


Entropia

by BarbaraAburi



Category: Hannibal (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Angst, Cannibalism, Fluff, Hannibal has a daughter, M/M, Murder, Murder Family, Psychological Torture, Psychological Trauma, Really do I even have to say that there will be murder?, Slow Build, dark!Will, single parent
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-04-10
Updated: 2016-04-18
Packaged: 2018-03-22 03:57:30
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 37
Words: 101,363
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3714082
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BarbaraAburi/pseuds/BarbaraAburi
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Will is losing his mind, cannibalism jokes are happening, Hannibal Lecter has a daughter and uncle Jack is the only one that doesn't give a shit about it, he has a killer to catch damn it. </p><p>I suck at summaries sorry.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Aperitivo

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first fic, please be merciful. English is not my first language so if anything is wrong please tell me. I don't own Hannibal (wish I did though), and there are no monetary gain on this fic.  
> Here is an image of Audra ( I know my photoshop skills are trash but hey at least we have an image): http://aburi.deviantart.com/art/Audra-Lecter-525913561?ga_submit_new=10%253A1428634768

Therapy with Doctor Lecter was a mistery to Will, if he could call them "therapy" at all. 

He and the doctor mostly had conversations about cases. Points of view regarding murder and such apart, it was rather refreshing to find someone he could speak to, even if it was to admit that he liked killing Garret Jacob Hobbs. 

Yeah, today was one of those days.

"It wasn't the act of killing Hobbs that got you down, was it? Did you really feel so bad because killing him felt so good?"

Spot on as always, Will could only think while preparing himself to say the next words, somehow he felt those words would be like admiting much more about himself than he was confortable, or prepared. It really doesn't matter.

"... I liked killing Hobbs." 

There was something in Lecter's eyes now, something that he was not sure he was suppose to be seeing, in a second it was gone though, the good doctor back in place, almost making Will think that it was only his imagination.

Well...

Could have been.

He couldn't really tell anymore these days. 

But he is getting ahead of himself and it seems like Hannibal is speaking. 

"Killing must feel good to God, too... He does it all the time, and are we not created in His image? " 

What the hell does that even mean? Some of that thought must have been on his face if Lecter's amusement was any indicator, Will chose to let his expression do the rest for him and in one second the doctor was speaking again. 

"God's terrific. He dropped a church roof on thirty-four of his worshippers last Wednesday night in Texas while they sang at him." 

"Did God feel good about that?" 

"He felt powerful."

Figures. 

And how did Will feel about that? He didn't really considered Hobbs a victim, just dead at this point, sure it felt good to kill the man, just. But what does that say about him? Will couldn't tell even if those thoughts were his own, if Hobbs' mind had left him or not. The only proof he had that it hadn't is his growing emotional compromise regarding Abigail. The poor girl now in a coma after all that happened, he was almost glad for it, no one should be awake to face the death of their family like this at such young age.

And he is emotional again.

Damn. 

He needs to leave. 

"I have to go... My dogs..." 

His voice was trailing off, he just knew Hannibal noticed how distant he was, considering about what he might have learned about himself, but he took pity on Will and just got up from his chair, Will followed suit and proceded to follow the doctor towards the door, staring at the floor as he did so. 

Hannibal helped him put on his coat (unnecessary really) and opened the door, Will was ready to leave but colided with Lecter's back, he was just standing there blocking the way. 

Looking above Hannibal's shoulder, Will saw there was someone at the waiting room, strange, he was usually the last patient. 

It was a young woman, she couldn't have been older than Abigail. She was leaning on the wall, messy dark curls fell from her shoulders down to her hips, she had a small nose, not to prominent on her face, not very wide but slightly full lips and a very angular face. But that was not what truly impressed Will about this girl.

She had all too familiar prominent cheekbones, with a pair of maroon eyes reflecting slights red points that were staring right at Hannibal, she had a mask on he noticed, very stoic, if not a bit anxious and amused. 

And the good doctor? 

He was just staring at her, eyes slightly wide just as his mouth and oh, wasn't that interesting. 

A crack on Hannibal's mask (Yes Will noticed, give him some credit). 

Huh. 

That was a first.

Looking down after realizing he was staring, Will just stood there, not like he could leave with a Hannibal wall blocking the way out. The floor was interesting but then the girl said the last words he ever expected someone to say towards Hannibal Lecter. 

"Hello father." 

Well, no one could blame him for staring now.


	2. Degustação

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hannibal has to deal with his daughter, Will can't understand a thing anymore (he is just confused) and Hannibal's daughter is just angry with him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks a lot for the comments and the Kudos! This is really cool, I was really nervous about posting this but you guys have been so nice about this story that I'm a bit more confident. I will try not to disappoint. As you well know, I don't own a thing about Hannibal show. Pity.  
> Good reading!

Seven years.

He hadn't seen his daughter in seven years.

And now there she was, leaning against the wall of the waiting room as if it meant nothing. Her hair was longer he noticed, last time he saw her it didn't reach her waist line and now it's way past it, far longer then he would approve. 

Her face was changed as well, more angular with high cheekbones that, oh looked so much like his own, just as her eyes. She had her mask on, he could see the cracks on it, understandable she hadn't had much time to work on it, he was amused by it. It must have shown for she scowled slightly. 

Almost adorable.

Almost.

He knew what she was capable of.

But that was a conversation for another time, right now he needed to deal with her. Of course that was when he heard the small gasp behind him when she spoke. 

Oh.

Will.

He almost forgot.

Regaining his footing Hannibal went into the waiting room, giving Will space to leave the parlor, as he did so his daughter fixed her look on him instead, a slight movement on her eyebrow the only proof that she noticed something was off about the empath. 

Of course she noticed.

She was, after all, his daughter.

"Will, allow me to introduce my daughter, Audra Lecter."

The man in question jumped a bit, distracted from staring at Audra so much, subconsciously searching for something, be it resemblance to Hannibal or something entirely different.

Will Graham, you never disappoint. 

"Will Graham."

He grabbed her extended hand and Hannibal watched fascinated the way her face changed, a joyful young look fell upon her features and she smiled brightly at Will, while introducing herself in that enthusiastic way only youth provides. 

She was good. 

Smiling, he approached both of them, putting one hand at Audra's shoulder and another at the small of Will's back, noticing the way her eyes glued themselves at his hand on the empath he allowed a small conspiratory smile to her and was graced with a small familiar smirk in return. 

Will of course was oblivious to all this, still transfixed on her. There was a point when Hannibal almost feared that he would be interested in her somehow, but this thought died quickly when Will started to look to him and back at her as discreetly as possible, just curiosity then. He should have expected that. 

"You will have to forgive me Will, me and my daughter have much to discuss, it has been far too long after all."

Will was jumping quite a lot tonight he noticed.

"Yes of course, I was just leaving anyway... Nice to meet you Audra." 

He was avoiding her eyes, still walking in that defensive manner of his, her bright voice answered happily enough to avoid any awkwardness.

"Sure, bye Will, hope to see you again."

With a small nod towards Hannibal and a low 'Doctor Lecter', the agent left Hannibal's domain, leaving him alone with his daughter. 

The silence was heavy, her mask fell a bit, but only enough for him to know that she had not forgotten what had happened between them all those years ago in Lithuania, he expected no less from her, after all he had some idea about how she felt.

Being abandoned by your own father at a crime scene must be hard.

But again, this is a conversation for another time. 

He smiled, freeing his face from the good doctor character and extended a hand inviting her into his parlor. 

In she went.

He took his time watching her as she walked, posture perfect as always. She was wearing a dress, black with long sleeves that were pulled up to her elbows, the skirt was just above the knee. Her long curls fell down her back past a white belt she was wearing, creating a nice contrast with the blackness of her dress, on the front of it there were two pockets, and the collar was slightly big and wide. Her shoes simple and black, heels not too high, just enough.

In general it was a very harmless, innocent and elegant look for her. 

She always wore innocence as a weapon and today was not different.

"I must admit that I was not expecting you here Audra."

He spoke calmly.

She was still silent.

He turned his back on her to close the door.

Really, he should have expected the knife entering his right shoulder. 

The sick feeling of the knife uniting with his flesh in a way he rarely felt on himself, soon gone but right after he felt it on his neck, staining his white shirt with his dripping blood.

Rude.

"I am not here to kill you father, but I couldn't be here and not wound you somehow." 

She said this close to his ear, her voice deeper than he remembered, accent stronger than his own. While pressing the knife dangerously on his neck from behind, she pressed her face to his forcibly and continued.

"Just know this, I will forgive you, I would be mad not to. But not yet."

She turned them around, knife still pressed against his skin, to get herself closer to the door, when she did, Hannibal found himself being pushed, the door opened and close. She was gone then. Of course she would return there was no doubt of that. He could have defended himself, she was successful merely because he was curious about how far she would go. Both of them knew that.

Hannibal looked down at his stained shirt and smiled. 

Of course he would forgive her rudeness.

She was, after all, his daughter. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So that happened.  
> Hannibal and Audra's story will be told somewhere in the future chapters, since I am still organizing the details about it, again if you guys have any sort of idea regarding the characters or story line please let me know in the comments, hope you liked it. Critics are always welcome as well. 
> 
> According to my research, Audra means Storm in lithuanian, I thought it was fitting.
> 
> This is the dress Audra was wearing: http://dresslilly.net/shop/floral-print-retro-style-puff-sleeve-chiffon-slimming-womens-dress


	3. Apresentações

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Will is trying to cope with the new information about Hannibal's daughter, the stag is there again to say hello and to bring a new surprise, at this point Winston is the only thing that makes sense for him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I own nothing of Hannibal.

Hannibal Lecter has a daughter.

Audra Lecter her name was, with Hannibal's eyes, cheekbones and angular face. So much like him and so different at the same time, with unruly curls and a more relaxed way of dressing, but still carrying herself with authority and grace. 

Will is trying to wrap his head around the idea of Doctor Lecter falling in love with someone, sharing intimate moments or even holding a damn baby. 

Nope, not happening. 

As he arrived in front of his house, he thought that maybe it wasn't as simple as that, even with Hannibal's very well built mask, Will's empathy wasn't weak and he could see more of the doctor then most. Sure he had to try a bit harder, but he always managed somehow. And he knew that Hannibal Lecter could not fall in love. 

Not in the conventional way at least. 

As Will finally got inside his home his little army of strays came running towards him and disrupted his thoughts, after a session of licks and cold noses on him, Will made a sharp noise with his mouth and the dogs stopped their party, each going to their own bed. As he got on his bed, Will couldn't stop thinking about the interaction between father and daughter at the waiting room earlier. 

There was a strange and almost scary way with how Lecter treated his daughter, he was surprised of course, but regained his composture quickly and proceeded to act with sublime caution and strategy, she was no different, only a bit more obvious. A face as stoic as hers is difficult to find, the only person he knew that had a face like that was... 

Well...

Her father. 

God this was so weird. 

Anyway, he saw grudge on her eyes, so focused on Hannibal that they missed him almost entirely, giving him a few seconds to analize her. 

That was no daughter missing her father after a long trip, there was no love there, if there was it was extremely concealed. He also could not say that this was a chance meeting, he knew that she had planned this, she just hadn't expected for him to be there, but why? What did she want that required Hannibal's solitude?

As he said before, as far as he could tell, there was no love there, the waiting room was filled with anticipation, amusement and anger. Maybe he shouldn't have to think about Hannibal falling in love with someone after all, there were few reasons a daughter would treat her father like this and vice versa, maybe the relationship between Lecter and the girl's mother was bad, maybe she was a mistake and Hannibal in his youth did not even try to hide how against her birth he was. 

Because of course Hannibal had been young when Audra was born, the girl now couldn't be older then 20 years old, as the man was in his 40s Will could only assume that the girl had been born when Hannibal had between 20 and 23 years old top. That's too young to start a family. Lecter had been a surgeon, by that time he was probably studying for med school, he had no time for a child. 

Unwanted then. 

But still, it made no sense, Hannibal was not the kind of guy who had one night stands with someone, Will was missing something, a reason of why the doctor got involved with someone in the first place if he didn't want a daughter. 

It was too late for this shit. 

Still, better then nightmares, but sleep could only be avoided for a time before he couldn't resist, so Will slept. 

# 

Cold was the first thing Will felt when his eyes opened. 

The ground was wet he could feel it, there was little to be seen, mist covered Will and he could see nothing, just white smoke, even the earth beneath his feet was invisible to him. He started to walk, not knowing where he was going. 

There was a moment where the mist dissipated and Will could finally see. 

It was raining. 

But the water was going up not down. 

Huh. 

A dream then. 

There was a noise behind him, a puff of air, strong and cold. Will turned and there was the stag again, staring with those big black eyes. The water seemed not to touch neither the beast nor Will so his fur and feathers were all in place. The stag stood there, just watching him until he got close. 

That never happened before, afraid to disrupt the moment the empath stood still, the stag touched his big nose on Will's left cheek for just a second, then something changed and the stag gave a loud cry, being so close to Will it hurt his ears and he recoiled, startling the animal and making him run towards a forest right in front of him. 

It was not there a moment ago. 

That was disconcerting. 

Will followed, running as fast as he could on the mud, trying not to lose the stag from sight but it was too late. The creature was gone and Will couldn't understand this new development, the beast never touched him and it may have meant something. He stopped running with a heavy breath, closed his eyes trying to calm himself and that was when he heard the noise. 

Behind him something was moving and broke a twig. 

Quickly he turned and the sight waiting for him was one he did not expect. 

It was the stag, with its head high and the same grandiosity he was accustomed to, its feathers and thick hide gleaming, there was just one problem. 

This stag was white. 

It looked smaller he noticed, perhaps leaner, but it could be just an impression, maybe the changed colour playing mind tricks on him.

Tricked by his own mind trick. 

That was a first. 

Anyway. 

Will had no time to get close or wonder why it changed its colour before the beast attacked him and everything went black. 

# 

It was cold. 

That was the first thing he noticed when he woke up. 

He felt something on his hand and looking down Will saw Winston, his loyal dog all dirty and tired on his side. He looked around and had no idea where he was. 

Ah. 

Sleepwalking again. 

With a heavy sigh Will could only wonder how far he went this time. 

"Come on Winston, lets go home." 

And with that he turned around and walked, Winston beside him. What else was he suppose to do? Trying to find home would be tiring but he had to, he had a class to teach next morning and he didn't even know what time it was. Well, at least now he had time to think about his strange dream with the stag. He had no idea why it changed, but it did and that was important somehow. 

He just needed to understand what it meant, of course. 

Another sigh escaped him. 

Easy as pie. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yey white stag!  
> Anyway I hope you guys liked it, comments and kudos are appreciated, as well as critics and ideas. Thanks for reading!


	4. Memórias

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hannibal remembers about Audra when she was a child, Abigail is still in a coma and new pieces are on the board now.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading this really, this is amazing. Guys, again, if you think I am going crazy with this warn me so I don't screw this up. Again I own nothing related to Hannibal.
> 
> Good reading!

Abigail still slept.

He wondered about what would happen when she woke up, Will was already feeling paternal towards the girl, an expected symptom of his empathy when directed towards Garret Jacob Hobbs. One that Hannibal expected to use of course, be it against the empath or in favor to him he still did not know, that would depend on Will entirely, but for now the girl was more valuable alive then dead. 

It was not the time to break Will. Not yet. 

As Hannibal looked to Abigail he couldn't help but think about his own daughter. Audra had been a surprise, a new piece in his little game that needed a function, even if his relationship with the girl was not the best she still was his daughter and he would try not to kill her. 

He was too egocentrical to kill a part of himself just like that. 

Also he enjoyed the companionship that she provided, being the only one who had seen him in his full, it was refreshing not to pretend sometimes, with her he could be himself, just like she could be herself with him.

After their little encounter a couple of days ago he hadn't seen her again, she was probably organizing her things (if she had them) to move into Hannibal's home. The closer she was to him the safer she would be, that's what he taught her and that is what she was doing.

Of course she realized that was not always true, she would have more caution now, but he was safer as a friend then as an enemy, as she had said herself, she would be mad not to forgive him eventually and he was proud of her for thinking like that. 

He first realized her value a long time ago, they were still in Lithuania. She was 7 years old, still a child but clever enough to create an alibi for him when the police came to interrogate about one of his kills. To say that he was surprised wasn't quite enough for what she had done. He could still remember clearly as day.

It was early in the morning, perhaps 6 AM when he heard the knocking on his door, he was still wearing his night-suit and just finished putting on a black robe when he answered the door and faced two police officers asking if they could come in and ask him a few questions because someone has been murdered.

Apparently they had reason to suspect him.

He and the agents went into the living room, they were asking their questions, trying to fish Hannibal into answering one of them in a suspicious way.

Everything was under control.

Then they asked him where he was the previous night.

Usually he had an answer for that, he was always careful when creating an alibi.

But he was still young, 28 years old and impulsive at the time. The man he killed was so rude that he couldn't wait a second to kill him, forgeting caution almost completely.

He was thinking about the answer when they heard a small voice coming down the stairs.

"Dad, my foot is bleeding again. The bandage you made last night is all ugly and it's hurting."

In came Audra, she was still wearing her pajamas, a white dress. She was holding herself up on the stair railing, her small round face covered with tears and eyes fixed on the blood coming out of her foot staining the bandages that covered it, she looked frightened. 

She was the image of innocence.

He did not remember putting that bandage there, nor the cut on her foot the last time he saw her. 

Acting like the preoccupied father he ignored the agents and went fast to her, taking her up and carrying her bridal style, he took her to the armchair in the living room, where the officers were. Kneeling in front of her while making soothing sounds he took the bandage off the way a bit and was surprised to see a deep cut there, she used his proximity and hid her face on his shoulder, grabbed his robe with her small hands and said with a crying voice.

"Daddy it's hurting."

She never called him 'daddy' before, usually it was only 'father'.

Oh.

"As you can see, I was taking care of my daughter, yesterday night she cut her foot stepping on a glass shard, I stayed to take care of her."

"And where is the mother?" one of the officers asked.

He looked mournfully at Audra and caressed her hair.

"Dead."

There was a small silence.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Lecter. I believe we have enough for now, we will keep in touch if anything new comes to pass."

"Of course, allow me to accompany you to the door."

He did and out they went. When he returned Audra was still sitting on the armchair, crying and looking down. 

Of course she was crying, her pain must have been real. 

"Audra, I need you to tell me what happened to your foot."

He kneeled again and took the bandage completely, the blood was roaming freely now and she winced. 

"The knife you keep in your room. I stepped on it."

He got up to get his emergency kit and got back quickly, sitting in front of her and starting to clean the wound. 

"That must have hurt, why did you do it?"

He kept that knife inside the cabinet beside his bed, hidden, she must have gotten it and stepped on it on purpose, she didn't have that cut yesterday morning when he had last seen her and the wound was fresh.

"They were asking you where you were last night and you were not home."

She was trying to keep her voice steady as he moved his hand on her foot, a little wavering she continued.

"I thought... I thought that they would take you away if you said that... That you were not here and... I'm sorry father."

She was sobbing now. 

He was giving the bandage one last look to see if everything was ok and turned to her, usually he was not fond of touching, but she had given him time at least, to frame someone else for the murder or to clean his name completely, so he got her on his lap and gave her a hug, trying to calm her down.

"There is nothing to be sorry for, you helped me today Audra and I am very grateful."

She looked at him with those big maroon eyes of her and sniffed.

"Really?"

"Yes." 

He allowed his voice to get a more humorous tone as he spoke his next words.

"I believe you even deserve a reward for this, ask me anything for breakfast and I shall do it for you."

Her eyes were wide and her mouth a slightly opened, she was not accustomed to him being playful with her, he usually was serious, never unkind though, she did not deserve any punishment on behalf of her poor excuse of a mother, and that would have been rude. 

She smiled and said what she wanted, he carried her to their kitchen and sat her on the table. It was funny really, to watch her not knowing what to do with herself, until she settled to staying still and quiet, almost as if afraid that this was be a dream and she would wake up. 

After a while thinking about what had happened Hannibal asked her the question that would change everything.

"Tell me Audra, how would you like to spend more time with your father? "

And thus he began to teach her, his own daughter, to kill. She was his first experiment in a way, molded in his own image. He watched her grow both in body and in mind, teached her techniques of both physical nature and mental manipulation, she was becoming a predator just as him. After a while, he didn't have to hide anymore, she even knew that what they were eating was not a 'what', but a 'who', and never complained or judged.

She even shared his humor with little cannibalistic jokes.

Really that was one of his favourite things about their relationship.

But time passed and mistakes had been made and...

"How is your shoulder?"

As Hannibal woke up from his memories he turned and saw her there, at the entrance of Abigail's room, she was all in black, trousers, boots, shirt and leather jacket. Her hair was pulled up in a ponytail, sharp features looking at him with an amused expression. 

He would need to have a few words with her about her wardrobe.

Later.

"Nothing for you to worry about."

She hummed and got closer, standing by his side and proceeding to watch Abigail.

"Who is she?"

"Her name is Abigail Hobbs, her father was killed a few days ago as well as her mother. He was a serial killer, known as the Minnesota Shrike before he died."

She gave a small chuckle and crossed her arms.

"And you are here because?"

"The man who killed her father interests me, I believe he has a great amount of potential to become something more."

"Another experiment? Good to know some things never change."

He looked at her fully now, turning his body on her direction. After a few minutes to study her he made his decision. 

He had nothing to hide from her, she would understand that he was giving her not only information, but a new role he trusted her to follow.

"His name is Will Graham, his pure empathy allows him to think and act like anyone, but he helps the FBI as a profiler, focusing on serial killers instead."

She was looking at him now, paying attention. A mission has been given.

"The man I met at your office?"

"Yes."

"This girl's father... Garret? Did he try to kill her?"

"Yes."

"Will must feel a lot for her then... She may need a friend after all this, someone that doesn't remind her of her family so much."

And that's why he admired her, she had a role now and accepted it. 

"Indeed, we must protect Abigail Hobbs at all costs."

With an amused voice she asked him. 

"Are you getting sentimental father?"

She saw too much though.

He smiled and returned to watch Abigail, he was distracted but still saw Audra getting closer to him, noticing her intentions he rose his arm and gave her an one armed hug. Her right hand was on his waist and her head resting on his shoulder. 

"I missed you father."

Hannibal was smiling now, no matter the amount of anger she had, she was still dependent on him. Almost completely. 

"I know."

"Not more then I missed your food though."

He allowed himself to chuckle a bit and rested his head on hers now, while she played the game with the right cards she would be safe and woudn't be one of his worries.

"Oh..."

They both turned to the door and put on some space between them. 

"Hello Will." 

"Hey Will, nice to see you again." 

The game has started anew. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And now it begins! MUAHAHAH!  
> I'm still not ready to explain the thing between Hannibal and Audra, the crime scene thing, so this will remain a mistery for now.  
> What do you guys think? Tell me, remember, any critics or ideas are appreciated. Kudos are nice too.  
> Thanks for reading.


	5. O Jogo Começa

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Audra begins to play her role, Will gets to know her better, Alana can't turn her psichiatrist side off and Hannibal is just watching, for now.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I think this is a bit big, I got carried away. Thank you guys for the comments and kudos, they really keep me going with this fic. There's a bit of Will/Alana in this chapter, but it's not gonna happen, it's just there because I thought it was important for Will's character.  
> As you well know, I own nothing. 
> 
> Good reading!

It was a normal day.

Well, a few days ago he killed a man, proceeded to adopt his daughter (at least in his mind), and a few days after that, he shot some guy who used people as fertilizer. 

So Will didn't really have a line to what a normal day would be, but until that moment everything was ok. He just got out of class, arms full of assignments that were sure to occupy his whole weekend.

He was already dreading the grammar.

As he walked to his office Will was boarded by Alana.

She was as beautiful as ever, her perfect curls bouncing as she walked calling his name, her black skirt and red blouse contrasting with her beautiful blue eyes. 

"Alana."

She was close and smiling now.

"Hey Will, how have you been?"

"Hum... Good, good. Really, I'm fine Alana, there's no reason to worry."

"Not worried just... After what happened at the hospital, I was wondering if you've visited Abigail yet."

Of course he hadn't, he was still trying to come to terms with the fact that he apparently enjoyed killing and shooting people, he wasn't sure if seeing Abigail wouldn't bring out Hobbs' feelings out for her, amongst other more dangerous ones.

Faced with his silence Alana spoke again.

"I just don't think you should, not alone I mean. Maybe we could go together, I could take another book."

Will appreciated the thought, but it was somewhat annoying how everyone out there, at some point, was trying to protect him from himself, he liked to think that he was able to cope with his own head. 

Even if deep inside he knew he couldn't. 

With a sigh, Wil adjusted the papers on his hands and, staring at the floor, spoke. 

"Really it's fine, don't worry. I wasn't planning on visiting Abigail, not this week at least, as you can see I have too much to do."

He pointed to the assignments on his hand and she laughed a bit, that made him rise his eyes and stare at her face. She was so beautiful, there was almost nothing about her that he didn't like, both in appearence and personality. The only thing he couldn't take was the way she looked at him. 

Never at ease. 

Always analizing, she didn't even realize she was doing it. 

That was a big reminder of why it never would work between them and Will resented that the most. 

"Well good, I need to go now. Work calls, see you later Will."

He gave her a nod and that was his goodbye, he watched her walk away for a bit, admiring her figure, but soon walked out of the building and to his own car. 

He should consider the idea of not lying to Alana so much.

#

The hospital looked the same. 

The same place where he ran down the stairs, gun in hand and shot the man that was kidnapping Abigail. 

It looked as if nothing had happened, amazing. 

Walking through the corridors he felt nostalgic, not in a very good way but still. As he got closer to Abigail's room he could hear low voices from inside along with some vage chuckling, his mind was alert in an instant.

He hurried just a bit. 

But as he entered the room his mind blanked almost instantly.

Hannibal was inside with Audra under his left arm. Her head was on his shoulder and his head was rested on hers, they were standing at the end of Abigail's bed, both with their eyes closed and with easy smiles on their faces. 

They were striking together, he had not expected to feel like this, everything he noticed on their prior meeting was almost completely gone, the anger, the grudge, everything. They seemed at ease with each other, especially Hannibal.

He looked so...

Will had no word to explain, the doctor's face was partly free of his usual mask, it made him feel out of breath, it was like discovering a secret. This frightened him a bit. Hannibal's face was calm, his eyes closed, the light coming from the window caught his features along with Audra's in a way that...

"Oh..."

He had to disturb the moment. Of course he had. 

Both seemed to wake up, putting some distance between them.

"Hello Will."

"Hey Will, nice to see you again."

Will closed his mouth quickly and looked at them. Hannibal seemed glad that he was here, the tranquility on the doctor's face was not yet completely gone and Will felt a bit strange having it directed at him. Audra was smiling but it was a different smile from the one she gave him at the waiting room, now she was calmer, not forcing any maneirisms on him.

Yes he noticed. PLEASE give him some credit. 

"Hey, are you two here for long?"

As Will asked this he seated himself at the sofa right besides the door.

"Not long no. We arrived 15 minutes ago or so, I wanted to introduce Audra to Abigail and explain the situation, as she will be staying I felt the need to fill her in."

That makes sense, he trusted Hannibal not to give her any vital information about the case or himself, much of what she must know now were already on the news so it didn't really matter. So he nodded.

The silence was becoming a bit unconfortable, fortunately Audra came to the rescue, the girl sat down beside him on the sofa and spoke with a voice deeper then he expected now that he was paying attention, her accent was far stronger than Hannibal's. He had to admit, it was endearing.

"I'm so sorry Will, last time we met I hadn't had the oportunity to speak appropriately with you, I feel introductions are still in order."

She even spoke like her father for god's sake.

"I know your name you know mine, what else is there to know?"

He saw Hannibal's amused smile before the doctor turned away from them and watched Abigail and Audra's eyes gave a small twitch. 

He was blunt to the point of being rude. 

Nice way of introducing yourself Graham.

"Sorry I... It's been a long day."

"Of course. Well, since names are already known, what do you do Will?"

"I am a teacher at the FBI Academy. Occasionally I work on the field though, but not always. You?"

"I'm doing nothing at the moment, I just arrived so I'm still getting accustomed to things in this country, but I am very interested in studying medicine in Johns Hopkins."

At that Hannibal turned to them, a slightly surprised but pleased expression on his face. 

This girl was helping him see a lot more of doctor Lecter, it was exhilarating to say the least.

"Medicine? I was not aware of your decision."

With a crooked smile at his direction she said.

"You are aware now at least father. I have been thinking about this for some time now and I believe this is the best course for me."

It was unusual to see someone sass Hannibal like that, but still gratifying, he couldn't help but give a small chuckle, receiving a smirk from Audra and an amused expression from her father. 

"It suits you Audra, I am very proud."

"Thank you father."

They were smiling now and Will started to feel a bit unconfortable, like perhaps he was intruding in what should be a private moment.

Forget perhaps. 

He definitely was.

"Well then, we know names, jobs and future prospects. That's quite enough for today I think, I must go, much of my things are suppose to arrive today and I need to arrange everything."

Audra gave him an unexpected one armed hug and a kiss on his cheek. He did not appreciate physical contact but it was all too fast so he couldn't really react.

"Goodbye Will, I really hope to see you again."

She got up, approached Hannibal, put a hand on his left shoulder and kissed his cheek. Then she looked at Abigail lying on the bed and stopped. 

Will couldn't see her face, but he saw her approaching the bed and grabbing the Abigail's hand and giving it a slight squeeze.

"I hope to be able to meet you soon, goodbye Abigail."

Will was dumbstruck watching her leave, his heart swelled at the sight of both girls together, it felt right somehow. Unknown to him at his side, a certain doctor was watching his face with great interest and amusement.

"I apologize on her behalf Will, I know you don't appreciate excessive physcal contact with people."

Hannibal was still in the room. He chose to ignore the doctor's comment. 

"You never told me you had a daughter."

"No."

"I am your friend. Any particular reason not to tell me about her?"

"You never asked."

Fucking figures.

Will gave a sigh and got up, going to the doctor's side and crossing his arms. Both turned and watched Abigail.

"Your daughter is a good girl you know, has a lot in common with you. You did a good job with her."

He was only saying this because of the paternal feeling that was getting a hold of him right now, watching Hannibal and his daughter interact, while in the presence of Abigail no less, made it worse, reminded him of family. 

And Hobbs.

He was so distracted by the girl sleeping on the bed that he lost the fixed stare he was receiving from Hannibal, as well as his triumphant smile.

"Thank you Will."

Lecter got just a bit closer to him and spoke again, smile still on his face.

"I completely agree."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok I have NO idea about how college works in the US (the applications and such), it's a mistery to me, so if I write anything wrong about it please let me know so I can fix it. I would hate to get something so basic wrong.  
> Well what did you guys think? Let me know, remember critics and ideas are always welcome.  
> Thanks for reading.


	6. Verdades e Considerações

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hannibal has much to considerate regarding Will, Audra tell a bit of her time in Luthuania and cannibalism jokes begin to run wild.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Usually I try to write everyday, but I had a test on Monday so yesterday I rested a bit. Here is the new chapter! Just saying, Hannibal's uncle Robert is a bastard in my story, I didn't really think about Murasaki yet, so bear with me.  
> I own nothing.  
> Good reading!

"I shouldn't even be here."

Hannibal turned to him at that.

"Because of Abigail's abducting?"

Will nodded.

"If I may be blunt, considering your empathy and imagination, the place where you are is of no importance, the intensity of the trauma would be the same anywhere."

Now Will looked at the doctor, it was unusual of him to be so direct about this. 

Big mistake that was. 

It was late afternoon, the orange coloured light was coming from the window and doing wonders to Hannibal, dancing upon his sharp face and accentuating his foreign features . There was a bit of hair out of place though, just hanging there, right above the doctor's left eye, as if rebelling against the order and control that he possessed, he stared at it for a bit.

Will had to admit, Hannibal looked good at the moment.

Only now he noticed that Lecter was watching him as well. 

There was a small smile on his lips, his eyes were somewhat amused as he stared back at his face, Will felt as if he was caught doing something bad and looked quickly back at Abigail, where had that come from? 

He needed to leave.

Now.

"I should go."

"Of course."

With one last long look at the bed, Will gave a small nod without turning to the doctor and turned to leave, only to be stopped by Lecter's voice.

"Will, I'm thinking about cooking dinner in Audra's honour. If you would indulge me and attend to it I would be most grateful."

"Hum... Sure, when would it be?"

"I haven't decided the precise date yet, but in no more then 3 days, I'm thinking about inviting Jack and Alana as well, she would enjoy meeting them. "

At the mention of Alana's name Will made his decision.

"Ok, I'll be there."

"Thank you Will."

And so Will left, he really needed a drink and sleep after today. 

#

Well, wasn't that interesting. 

Hannibal left the hospital just after Will, he was currently driving back home, thoughts running wild inside his head. 

Will had already responded to Audra's actions at the hospital, eyes fixed and expression almost mournful on his face as he watched her taking Abigail's hand, he didn't even seem to notice he was doing it. It was good to know that Hobbs was still affecting the empath, his paternal feelings and need for a family were showing and Hannibal was sure he could use this.

What he hadn't expected was the agent's attention directed to himself though.

Will had looked almost distracted, his eyes traveled upon his face in a brazen way, Hannibal could only watch amused as the agent noticed he was being watched in return, quickly averting his gaze back to the bed.

Unexpected.

But not unwelcome.

He never thought about manipulating Will like that, using seduction as a tool. Having witnessed Graham's infatuation with doctor Alana Bloom, Hannibal discarted the idea almost completely, believing it could alienate Will rather then make him get close, so he went with the alternative and forged their friendship.

He had planned of getting involved with doctor Bloom at some point, to get her as far away from Will as possible, make him forget, but now he was rethinking his original plan.

Will had shown a different side of him today, even if subcontiously.

There was possibility for something more now.

Hannibal himself never cared about genders, sex was always considered by him as a means to an end, he was never vulnerable, always in control and, when necessary, he would just make the person disapear if she or he posed a threat in any way. It was easy.

His thoughts stopped a bit as he got home, as he expected Audra was there already, standing in front of the front door waiting for him. He parked the car and went to meet her, as they got inside she started to speak. 

"You never told me he was so rude, we've killed for much less than that."

"Will's rudeness is not deliberate, it is a defense mecanism he uses to protect himself."

She gave a heavy sigh at that.

"I'll just have to get used to it then."

He made a humming noise and went inside the kitchen, being followed by Audra who supported her weight on the counter. She watched him while he began to prepare himself to cook dinner, after a moment she spoke again.

"Any news?"

"I find myself considering seduction."

"What? Whose?"

"Will's."

"Well you did always say that love is a strong motivator, having him fall for one of us would make things easier, but whom?"

"He already subcontiously watches you with a paternal gaze. If, and only if, I pursue this idea, it would have to be me."

"That makes sense, but I thought he was straight?"

Already wearing his apron and with his sleeves up his elbows, Hannibal smiled a bit and turned to her. 

"Will's mind, be it as dark as it is, is quite an easy place to navigate once you understand it a bit, nothing in there is so strong to the point of being permament."

She hummed a bit.

"If he is as you speak, let's hope this darkness of his is permanent enough."

"Yes, now please, go set the table."

"Ugh, yes father."

Hannibal gave a small chuckle and returned to cook.

#

"Oh, I definitely missed your food more then I missed you."

Hannibal smiled, dinner with his daughter was always refreshing, as he said before, he could act more freely, as well as she. Her face was free of any maneirisms that she invented for herself, eyes closed as she chewed on the meat.

"So, who are we having for dinner?"

"A Chef I had the misfortune of meeting a few months ago."

She hummed a bit.

"He makes a great Balandèliai though."

They were eating Balandèliai tonight, one of Audra's favourite dishes, made with (usually) minced pork with onions and rice wrapped in cabbage leaves cooked in boiling water. She prefers hers with ketchup, while Hannibal likes his with sour cream.

Hannibal laughed a bit at the small joke.

"Indeed he does. I can only imagine how you survived so long without it."

Of course he had to push, it was in his nature, almost instantly the easy smile on her face fell and she just stared at him, mask in place again. 

"No, you can't. Uncle Robert was never fond of anything that threatened the family name as you well know, after you left me, he took care of my punishment as he saw fit."

Hannibal's eyes twitched at that.

"I thought the police would get involved in the case."

"They did, uncle made a deal I assume, something not to make the case public. I never knew the details."

"Why call him uncle? He is my father's brother, not mine."

She just returned eating. 

Ah.

Robert made her call him uncle in his absence. The fact that she still did suggested that not doing it meant punishment, she was traumatized.

He had no idea of the extents of his uncle's punishments in that situation, Hannibal himself didn't have to deal with much, being so close with his aunt gave him some advantages regarding Robert. Audra, apparently, had no such protection.

This made his blood boil. Audra was no stranger to suffering, her training had been difficult and demanding, especially with her being so young, but Hannibal knew the boundaries and tried not to destroy her completely. His uncle had no regard for his little masterpiece. 

Hannibal was not weak, therefore, Audra could not be weak.

And his uncle made it so. 

He could barely contain his anger at the moment.

"And how was uncle Robert when you left Audra? It's been a long time since I last saw him."

She smirked now, just finishing the last pieces of her food. 

"You never told me he would make such a great Balandèliai father."

Hannibal completely ignored his food now and watched her.

Right now, she was not weak.

Killing Robert was a bold move, he could only hope she had done it right and that no trouble would come back to them. But he smiled nonetheless, with no guard, a predator's smile, teeth and everything.

His only regret is that he could not help.

"I never had the chance to learn that fact myself. Shall we?"

He raised his glass of wine towards her, she hesitated a bit, but raised hers as well and they toasted.

"I do hope you like being called Count Lecter from now on father." 

"I'm sure I'll get used to it."

Today was a productive day, he still had much to decide concerning Will, but for now?

Things were good.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've decided not to describe much of what Audra went through in Lithuania with Robert, instead I will demonstrate with certain habits that she aquired because of it. I hope you liked it!
> 
> This is where I took the dish from: http://www.studyinlithuania.lt/en/living_in_lithuania/cultureandclimate/food


	7. O Estripador

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Ripper attacks again, leaving everyone confused and angry. Hannibal and Audra listen to Vivaldi and Will feels the domesticity only a family can provide.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am sooo thankful for you guys, thanks for reading this fic, it really means a lot. Right now I am sick, I have a cold and I feel like I am dying, so I will try to concentrate on this fic because there is little else to do besides suffering... (drama)  
> As you all know I own nothing. Good reading!

The pendulum swings.

\- x - x - x - 

I see Mr. Daniels there, frantic looking around, searching for a place to escape, and consider his insignificance. Nothing but a pig, a waste of space and life, I could not see him and let him infest the world for a second longer then necessary.

I come closer and the smell of his stench is stronger now, Mr. Daniels confronts me, my annoyance at his boldness grows, but it won't last long. Quickly getting in front of the chair he is sitting I kick him on the throat to stop the screaming, his eyes are wide and he begins to understand he is about to die.

Good.

Getting around the chair I cover his eyes, he is now blind to the world as well as mute, already much better then in life, not one to take chances I gag him as well. The first thing I break are his knees, then his forearms. He is already squirming on the chair. I kick it and he falls on his right side down on the floor, that is when things get interesting. 

The first hooks to enter Mr. Daniels left side make him tremble and try to scream, the pain of his broken limbs make everything all the more satisfying to watch, there are in total 30 hooks on the pig now, all over his left middle side, leg and back. All superficial and none with the intention of killing. 

It gets more intense that way.

With patience I put ropes through every hook, I have time and none of us are going anywhere so soon. I put the ropes up and around the low wooden beam at the ceiling of the cottage we are, with some difficulty I am able to lift him up, he already looks ethereal. 

I must be quick or he will die of blood loss, getting on my knees in front of him, I make three surgical cuts, Mr. Daniels's screams are muffled by the gag, but I can appreciate the music. The stomach and the kidney are taken first, and last the heart. I take it in my hand and watch as life leaves Mr. Daniels.

After some details are arranged I step back and appreciate my masterpiece.

He is now elevated to godhood.

This is my design.

\- x - x - x -

Will's eyes open with a gasp and he stares at the body in the air in front of him. Mr. Daniels torso was lifted by 30 hooks, he was stuck to the ceiling, his face looked peaceful as he stared foward (with a hook on his scalp) and pointed with his right arm (which was elevated by one single hook on his wrist) towards the opposite corner of the room, his other arm supporting itself on his left side. There was no blood on him, he was meticulously cleaned. 

"So? Is it him?"

"Yes."

Jack was standing by his side now, staring at the body with a frustrated expression.

"We have to take as much as we can from this body, we will be having two more if we don't catch him this time."

Jack's phone rang.

"Yeah? "

.

.

.

"WHAT?"

Everyone jumped a bit with Jack's scream and looked at him, he was obviously distressed, afte a while he ended the call. 

"We have another body."

"Already? Well, just another thursday." Price mumbled.

"What's the deal with this one?" Asked Beverly.

"They think it's the Ripper."

Silence.

"Jack..."

"I know. I have to go there, Will you are coming with me we need to know if it's him."

And so Will and Jack went to another crime scene. While in the car Will spoke.

"Jack that body we just saw was found this morning, if this new body is part of the sounder..."

"Then this bastard killed this person today, I know."

The silence stayed now until they got to the place.

#

This body was arranged in a different than the other. 

This man was sitting down, there were hooks on him as well, but only to keep him straight. His head was looking up and his left hand (also held by one single hook) was supported by his bent left knee, pointing towards the other corner of the room, much like the other body. 

This fact alone made Will give a side glance towards Jack. 

The man was angry, he noticed the resemblance on the kills, but still needed to be certain. 

"Everybody out."

And the pendulum swayed.

\- x - x - x - 

I tie the man to the chair, he doesn't fight me, this is almost easy, he still doesn't know he is going to die. 

I waste no time in hitting the man's throat, I never learned his name, it was not important. Getting behind him now, I put a a blindfold on him and a gag, he looks more like he should have been from the begining, nothing like the pig he is. The knees are the first thing I break, followed suit by his forearms, he can't fight now, making the hooks easy, there aren't much, 10 or so, I put them inside his skin sometimes slowly sometimes fast, just to watch him squirm.

The ropes through the hooks are thrown up and tied around a beam on the ceiling, lifting his arm and putting him in position. 

His breathing is heavy and paiful grunts are leaving his mouth, they are like music, soft and beautiful. Now I get close and make one precise cut on his torso, he moves a bit, but the pain makes him stay still. The intestine is the first thing I remove, followed suit by the lungs. After that last removal I watch as life leaves this thing's eyes.

He is now what he should always have been, human.

This is my design.

\- x - x - x - 

Gasping Will came back to himself.

"Jack?" 

In came the man, anxious and nervous.

"So?"

"It's the Ripper."

Crawford could barely contain his anger.

#

Back at the lab with the two bodies lying side by side, Will watched as the forensics worked.

"Any idea at what they were pointing at?"

"The Ripper perhaps?" Said Zeller while watching his computer screen.

At this Price made a face and said.

"Their hands were being held by hooks, not like they had much choice."

"I know I just said..."

"Yeah, made no sense."

"Guys, come on! Will, come here I have something but... It makes no sense."

Will got up from where he was sitting and approached Beverly. 

"What have you got?"

"The time of the deaths, they have a difference of only four minutes between them, these people died at, basically, the same time. "

There was silence

"That's impossible, there is an hour of distance between the crime scenes."

"I know."

Will was getting nervous now, he was certain it was the Ripper, the pattern was there, he even felt the killer in each crime scene. This was making no sense. 

"Call Jack, he will want to know this."

They did and said man arrived in a few minutes. 

"YOU SAID IT WAS THE RIPPER!"

"I did and it was. I even felt him Jack."

"Then would you care to explain, HOW DID HE MANAGE TO KILL TWO PEOPLE AT THE SAME TIME?"

"I DON'T KNOW."

"Is it confirmed they both died where they were found?" Jack asked the forensic trio.

"Yes. " Zeller spoke.

"Is it possible he may have had help?" Said Jack turning back to Will.

"He is too narcissistic to ask for help Jack, it's highly unlikely..."

"Oh you mean more unlikely then being at two places at the same goddamn time?!"

Will stopped speaking then, there were several pictures of the bodies on the wall, he stared at them as if they could tell him the answer to this. He thought about what he felt at the crime scenes. 

He is now elevated to godhood.

He is now what he should always have been, human.

Will looked at the sitting man and the floating one. He took both pictures in hand of them and put them together. His breath caught as he watched the pictures together, slowly he turned towards Jack (who was arguing with Beverly about any mistakes she might have made) and spoke so softly it was almost a whisper.

"Adam..."

They all stopped talking.

"Who?"

"The Creation of Adam, the painting. He recreated the painting."

At that he put the two images together at the wall and they all watched as both man's fingertips touched each other's and formed the painting. 

Will's heart was beating fast. 

It was beautiful.

"He is creating something new..." He whispered.

Jack's frustrated growl was ignored by Will, he was admiring art at the moment.

#

"Winter."

"Winter it is then."

Vivaldi was one of Audra's favourite composers, being Winter her favourite song, the joyful tune was appropriate at the moment, both father and daughter excited about their kills, Hannibal thought of this as the introduction of his little masterpiece to the world. Killing those men at the same time had been Audra's idea, it served two purposes.

The police would be incredibly confused.

There was no chance of Hannibal leaving Audra again if she was alone.

He applauded their success.

The reconstruction of the painting had been his idea, when he suggested it his daughter just looked at him, eyebrows raised.

"When did you become so dramatic?"

"With time comes experience my dear."

And so they proceeded with their little plan, to her it was easier to lure her victim, the promisse of pleasure always blinded those with no value. Hannibal had been more dificult, but courtesy won the man's trust and he went willingly.

He made God, while Audra made Adam.

Now it was 21h and he was taking care of the meat they aquired today in their kitchen, while Audra swayed along with the music, killing always made her playful.

It made him like that as well, but he would never admit it out loud.

"Father, do we have enough for the dinner party?"

"Almost, only two more ingredients and we are set."

"Perfect." 

Just after Hannibal organized the meat appropriately, he heard the knocking on the front door. 

"Audra, would you please see who is it?"

She did so, still swaying to the music. Too young to care apparently. 

"Will?"

"Audra, sorry about the time, but can I speak with doctor Lecter?"

"Of course, come in, it must be freezing out there." Then she raised her voice a bit.

"Father! It's Will!"

In came Hannibal, sleeves rolled up and apron on, his hair was not combed like it would usually be, falling loosely over the doctor's forehead. For a second Will stared with his mouth slightly opened, Audra noticed and smiled a bit. 

Maybe her father's plan could work on him.

"Will, what a great surprise, I was just finishing dinner, will you be staying?"

"Ah, sorry doctor Lecter, it's just... We've had a new case today and I really wanted your advice, nothing is making sense."

"I'll be happy to lend any knowledge I may have, but would you indulge me and have dinner with us first?" Hannibal offered with a small kind smile.

Will looked down at that.

"Hum... I wouldn't want to impose, maybe I should go, coming here at this time may not have been the best idea..."

He was rambling and he knew it, soon he found himself being interrupted by a voice behind him.

"Please Will, father promised a great meal today, I just sent my application to Johns Hopkins and we are celebrating."

Will looked at her young face, those eyes radiating red and brown, eagerly waiting for a positive answer from him. 

He couldn't say no to that.

"Of course Audra, congratulations by the way."

"Thank you, now would you like to help me set the table?"

"Hum... Sure."

In they went, side by side, but as they passed Hannibal, Will's eyes and the doctor's crossed and the empath saw the fondness inside his eyes at the sight of him and Audra walking together. 

"If you two need anything, I will be in the kitchen."

With that the Lecter left and he and Audra stayed behind, setting the table, occasionally chatting and giving small laughs.

It was all incredibly domestic to him. 

He liked it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoyed this chapter, as you well noticed I am including stuff in the story, but mostly I will try to follow the canon line. Next chapter, fluff will happen! As much as I can write.  
> Remember critics and ideas are always welcome. Thanks for reading!


	8. Família

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dinner with the Lecters, nightmares and fluff.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey! As I said I'm sick so new chapter! I hope you guys like it, this is my first fic and fluff is a bit of a mistery to me, if it's not good tell me what can I do to make it better, I'd appreciate it. 
> 
> As you know I own nothing, good reading!
> 
> OBS: If you see any grammar mistake please tell me so I can correct them.

"God I don't even remember, how old was I when that happened?"

"Ten."

"That's right, then we went to a tailor to fix it, but the woman did a terrible job and father just stared at her, dead serious, and said 'You can do better then that', she was so scared. All that because of a silly dress."

Audra finished her story chuckling, Hannibal gave a small smile at the memory and Will still couldn't believe that this was happening. Here he was having dinner with the Lecters while talking about embarassing childhood stories.

And he was confortable, chuckling and smiling, it all felt so natural. The food was amazing, some italian dish he had no idea how to pronouce, Audra was proud because of her application, all smiles and stories. Hannibal was relaxed, easy. 

Will couldn't even remember why he got here in the first place.

"I really can't imagine you in this kind of situation." Will said turning to Hannibal with a small grin.

"There are many situations in which you do not imagine me in Will." Hannibal said, making eye contact with the empath and holding it. 

Will stopped pretending that the doctor did not affect him a few days ago, because what the hell right? He still didn't know what it meant though and seriously? He was not sure he wanted to know. 

The moment was interrupted by Audra.

"Yes, I dare say he even eats leftovers, I'm sorry for destroying the dream."

Will couldn't hold his laughter now, he couldn't imagine Hannibal Lecter doing something so mundane as that, his laughter was soon accompanied by Audra's as she raised her glass towards him in a toast, meanwhile her father was looking at his plate, cutting a piece of meat and smiling. 

"I don't know if I can forgive you for that." said Will grinning. 

She just smiled again. 

"I hope you can, now if you'll both excuse me I will clean my dishes."

"Do you need any help?"

"Thank you Will, but I'm ok."

With that she got up, took her plate and cup and went to the kitchen. Will watched her go for a moment then turned to Hannibal, who was already watching him. 

Ok then.

"You must be happy for her."

"I am."

"So... Leftovers?"

Hannibal gave a small chuckle and looked down. 

"I believe I am the one that may not be able to forgive Audra for that."

Will can't stop smiling damn it. 

"Father, I'm going to bed."

How long has the girl been standing there? 

She approached Hannibal and gave him a kiss on his cheek murmuring a goodnight, then she surprised Will by giving him a kiss as well.

"Goodnight Will, thank you for coming tonight."

"Hum... Sure, sleep well Audra."

She went to her room, running up the stairs. And they were alone again. 

"I believe you wanted advice on a case?"

Oh.

He almost forgot.

"Yes, it's... Well, the killer seems to have killed at two different places at the same time."

Silence.

"How about we take this conversation to the study?"

"Of course."

As they went, Will noticed that Hannibal was dressed in a more casual way. Well as casual for him as he could.

He was wearing a light blue shirt, the sleeves were still rolled up to his elbows, there was no tie, the two first buttons were opened and his hair was set loose. His pants were a more casual version of what the doctor usually wore, with no detail at all, only black. 

Ok, so apparently he was attracted to Hannibal.

This made sense really, Will found in him a solidity that he was unused to in his day to day life, their conversations helped ground him and most importantly, he trusted him. Until now, Hannibal was the only one who acted like Will's well being was a priority, he felt in control of himself when he was with the doctor, he couldn't feel that even with Jack.

Of course, Will knows that there is a wall there, for some reason Lecter wears a very complex mask, or he is hiding something or he is protecting himself, maybe something happened to him in the past and made him feel like exposing himself would be dangerous, maybe he feels vulnerable. Whatever the reason, Will felt like he didn't really know the doctor, but at the same time he felt like he knew enough. 

It was confusing to say the least. 

The fact that Hannibal was a man is something that should have bothered him a lot more, but in truth he was mostly surprised at himself, this side of him had never made itself known until now, but now that it has well, he couldn't really do much could he?

But now was not the time to speak of this, he had a case to discuss.

"Much better, now, I believe you were speaking about two murders occuring at the same time?" Hannibal said this with a slight tilt of his head, elbows on his knees and looking attentively at Will.

"Yes, I went to the crime scenes and... Did my thing, it was the same killer." 

"Were the crime scenes close to one another?"

"No, they were an hour of distance between them."

"Couldn't you be wrong then?"

Will gave a heavy sigh and rubbed his hands on his hair. After so much time being groomed to catch the Ripper he could tell the difference.

"Highly unlikely."

"But not impossible."

"No, of course not. But the evidence helps, they were both in different positions, creating an image together, only the killer would do that."

"What image did they create?"

Will hesitated, he wasn't suppose to tell the doctor so much about the case, but he felt like his choices about this were getting limited so he just spoke. 

"The Creation of Adam." As Will remembered the image of both bodies interacting from miles away as if they were connected his eyes fell to the floor.

"It was beautiful, as if they knew where the other was, both seeking a connection before they died." Had he really just said that? Will's eyes shot up and looked at the doctor ahead of him, his face was neutral, but there was something in his eyes, some sort of satisfaction that he couldn't understand. 

Will decided to change the course of this conversation quickly before he said something like that again. 

"Jack thought the killer may have had help."

"And what do you think about that?"

"Could be right, but I just... I saw both scenes and the feeling was the same, it was the same person. I have no idea what's going on."

The strange thing is doctor Lecter's eyes was still there, but when he spoke his voice was free of anything, save guilt. 

"Will I don't know if I can be of any use for you, this whole situation is very strange indeed, I'm sorry."

With a heavy sigh Will spoke again. 

"It's ok, I shouldn't come here expecting you to know everything as well, sorry about that."

"It was no trouble. Now, it's late, how many glasses of wine did you drink?"

"Hum... A few?"

"I don't think it's a good idea for you to drive like this, expecially at this hour of the night, you could stay and sleep in the guest room if you wish."

"I don't think it's necessary, I'm fine really."

"Please Will, I insist."

Eventually he accepted, Hannibal led him to a guest room, only stopping midway to turn the lights on Audra's bedroom off, and gave him a kind smile.

"Sleep well Will."

"Thanks, you too."

With one last look Hannibal left. 

Huh.

At least he couldn't say he didn't affect the doctor as well. 

Will got himself ready to sleep and laid down on the bed, so different from his own, soft and confortable, he would get trouble sleeping at his own house now that he knew something better. After a while sleep came and to his surprise there were no dreams, that is until he was woken up by some noise coming from the room beside his own.

He got up and went to check, you never know, could be a burglar or something. When he got there he noticed it was Audra's bedroom, saying her name lowly he opened the door and looked at her. She was sweating, lips trembling, her arms would give little spasms along with her legs. She was having a nightmare.

Will quickly got close, gently sat on the bed and put a hand on her head, softly speaking to her, after a moment she shot up, awake but still disoriented. 

"Where... The light, where is the light?!" She was starting to panic, hands clinging to him and looking around hysterically, she began murmuring something in a language he couldn't understand. Will's had enough of that, he loosened her hold on him, got up and turned the lights on, promptly returning to her bed.

"Audra? Look at me, do you know where you are?"

"...Will? What... I am in my room, in my father's house." She was whispering now, her breath a bit heavy.

"Good, you had a nightmare, are you ok?" 

"Yes, I think I am for now."

"Ok, I'll go back to bed, if you need anything I am at the room just beside yours ok?" With that he got up and turned, but felt a hand holding his wrist.

"Stay." Her voice was small, she was still scared. Will gave a small sigh, he got a chair that was at one of the corners of her room and sat beside her bed. 

"Ok."

She smiled and went back to sleep, after a while sleep found Will as well and everything went black.

#

The door opening was what woke him up, his neck was killing him and his back hurt, Will looked at the bed and Audra was still asleep, calm and without any traces of the nightmare, now his eyes went to the door. Hannibal was standing there, a surprised and wary expression on his face.

Will made a 'hold on' sign with his hand and quietly got up as to not wake her up, he walked towards Hannibal and both men went out of the room, speaking lowly.

"I heard noises last night and went to check, she was having a nightmare. I calmed her down, she asked me to stay so... I did."

"I was not aware Audra was having nightmares..." The surprise hadn't left the doctor's face yet, but now it was accompanied by a confused frown.

"Hannibal don't worry, I'm sure you are doing your best , she seems fine now." Hannibal was staring at him, there was wonder on his face the doctor was obviously trying to cover up but was failing. Why was he... Oh, he called him by name for the first time.

What do you do in this sort of situation? 

He smiled awkwardly a bit. 

"Thank you for your help Will." The doctor was smiling in that strange way he did, eyes going soft with small wrinkles around them. 

This was getting too intense for him so Will looked down at his feet, not knowing how to get away from this situation. 

"Come, I will prepare breakfast and I would enjoy the company."

Will nodded in relief and followed the doctor downstairs.

Breakfast was safer then that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, I know that both Hannibal and Audra are a bit out of character in this chapter, but please keep in mind that they are manipulating Will, creating the perfect family image and all, and as this is Will's POV that's exactly what they look like. The stories Audra was telling were all true though, as her nightmare (traces of her time with Robert are already showing, yey!). I really hope you all liked it, ideas and critics are always welcome.  
> Next chapter Abigail and Freddie!


	9. O Ninho do Picanço

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Audra has to deal with nightmares, Abigail meets Will and Hannibal, Freddie Lounds acts like Freddie Lounds and Alana is shocked that Hannibal has a daughter.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There you go! I hope you guys like it. If you see any grammar mistake please let me know. As usual you know that I own nothing. 
> 
> Good reading!

Nightmares.

She hid it well enough, he gave her that, but Hannibal now knew. 

He would have to make his daughter strong again, he could not condone with weakness. His current situation both with Will and the FBI didn't allow such convenience.

The empath had already left back to his house, after a confortable breakfast with the man, Hannibal was pleased to notice Will's growing affection for him, small enough not to change their friendship, but big enough to distract the agent and make him look the other way. 

Hannibal himself could admit that it was easier then he thought it would be to demonstrate attraction towards Will, those subtle glances and gentle smiles that usually were calculated with precision, now held real warmth in them. Of course he could tell himself it was because of Will's dangerous empathy, that he needed that reality to convince the man of his good intentions, but he knew the truth. 

The darkness in Will, the promise of understanding and companionship he provided were what made his attraction true. 

He would have to be careful with that. 

Ah, but Audra finally comes out of her room, dressed with a dark green sweater and her pajama pants. One look at his face was enough for her to stop walking for a second, she knew he was displeased with something. 

Good.

"Please." He pointed at the chair at his right at the table for her to sit.

When she sat there, Hannibal turned to her and spoke.

"Even if I applaud the punctuality of last night's incident I was very displeased of not being warned beforehand about it, if there is anything else that you have not told me I suggest you do it now." 

Her shoulders were tense and she was looking at her hands on the table, after a shuddering breath she spoke, her voice was a bit small.

"The nightmares are the only thing you need to worry about, they began before I got here, about two weeks ago. I was not accostumed to being alone and after everything that happened well... I have more scars than I thought."

"Will said that you were in panic because of the dark, did what happened to you involve small dark places?" Of course he already knew the answer but he needed her reaction. 

She closed her eyes for just a moment before opening them, her face aquired a dark angry look and finally she nodded.

Still affected by it, but willing to fight. 

He deeply regretted that his uncle was dead already. 

He extended a hand and touched hers, she flinched a bit with surprise.

"I will help you regain control of yourself, in time this won't be a problem."

Gentleness was the best way he knew to get to Audra, she always listened and now wasn't different, she gave him a small smile and nodded. 

"Thank you father."

He was about to say more about last night, but was interrupted by his phone. He gave a small sigh and got up to get it.

"Yes?" 

"Doctor Lecter, I'm sorry for calling you this early, but something happened." Of course it would be Jack. 

"Is there anything that I can do?"

"No no, nothing like that. Abigail Hobbs woke up doctor."

Hannibal's smile made Audra's eyebrows go up.

"Of course, I will be there shortly." And with that he hung up.

"What happened?"

"Abigail Hobbs woke up from her coma." 

And now two Lecters were grinning to each other. 

They had much to discuss.

#

"... because he is insane."

Ah Miss Lounds. 

His patience had a limit and she was constantly pushing it. 

She was gone now, only him, Will and Abigail in the room. The empath was anxious while introducing them to her, he watched her and saw the familiarity of Audra's forged innocence reflected back at him. 

This was going to be interesting. 

"I remember you, you killed my dad."

That was like a punch on Will, time to intervene.

"You’ve been in a bed for 3 weeks, Abigail. Why don’t we have a walk?"

They went outside then, Will and Hannibal giving her support as they walked, mostly the doctor would observe the empath's interaction with the girl, giving small smiles and answers when spoken to. 

"It’s not all I brought out in him." Said Abigail to something Will had said.

"Did he tell you about the young women he murdered?" Hannibal ventured.

Will shot him a look and Hannibal tried to pretend he didn't find it adorable.

"You don’t have to answer that right now, if you don’t want to." Will said.

"I’m going to be messed up, aren’t I? I’m worried about nightmares."

"We'll help you with your nightmares." Hannibal calmed her.

Will spoke next and Hannibal took that chance to observe them both, the agent was inclined towards Abigail, supporting his elbows on his knees and speaking with a soothing voice, she was paying attention, big blue eyes fixed on Will. Hannibal liked the image. 

"Killing somebody, even if you have to do it, it feels that bad?"

Oh even he wanted to know what Will would answer to that.

"It's the ugliest thing in the world."

Oh sweet Will, he spoke that obviously trying to avoid looking at Hannibal, the only one who knew he was lying. 

"I want to go home."

That surely could be arranged.

#

"Miss Lounds, it’s not very smart to piss off a guy who thinks about killing people for a living."

Well... The encounter between those two had been as good as possible. Though Hannibal enjoyed the fear in Freddie's eyes when those words were spoken (even he felt a small pleasant shudder at Will's sudden demonstration of darkness, not that he would admit it of course), he knew they were unfortunate. As they both got inside Hannibal's car Will spoke.

"I shouldn't have said that."

"You felt threatened, it was a normal reaction even if it may have negative consequences."

"You should have stopped me." Will said right after a small groan.

"I trust you to speak for yourself Will, I am here as your friend not as a controller."

Hannibal was driving, but he didn't miss the surprised expression on Will's face, it was truly interesting to see it morph into a pleased one, with a small smile and gentle eyes. 

"Thank you Hannibal."

That was another thing he enjoyed, the proof of Will's forts crumbling to the ground each time he said his name, he took the opportunity of the traffic light being red and turned to the empath, slightly taking him by surprise. 

"I am here for you Will, in any way you need me." He complemented it with a gentle smile, it was a bit foward but he wanted a reaction, and Will didn't disappoint.

The fascinating redness that painted his face barely covered by his stubble was what made Will's seduction a certain thing in Hannibal's mind, the empath surprised him a bit by not looking away, he stared back at the doctor with slightly wide eyes and when said eyes left Lecter's they laid briefly on his lips. 

That was when they heard the horn behind the car, the traffic light was green for some time apparently. 

Will jumped a bit and stared foward, Hannibal was calmer and just drove, a small grin on his face. 

"Thanks, I really appreciate it." Will said after a while.

"Of course Will." 

Hannibal smiled for the rest of the trip.

#

The encounter with Jack the next day had been tense, Will would frown and look down as Crawford read the article from tattlecrime.com. He spoke with Hannibal then.

"You were there with him and you let those words come out of his mouth."

"I trust Will to speak for himself."

"Evidently, you shouldn’t."

"I’m just happy the story wasn’t about Abigail Hobbs." Alana said with a sigh.

"Then it’s a victory." Jack's sarcasm traveled through his words, after a moment he spoke again. 

"Abigail Hobbs wants to go home. Let’s take Abigail Hobbs home."

Alana fought against it of course, always the ethical one. He needed Abigail inside her house, so he said something about denial and Jack was quick to agree with him. 

The visit to Abigail's house was uneventful to a point, the clever girl basically telling him that she knew he was the one calling her house the day her family was murdered, he would have to deal with that soon, he wanted to avoid killing her if possible.

Abigail's friend was also a surprise, the girl seemed loyal and kind at the beginning but revealed her rude nature when facing her mother, calling her crude names that made Hannibal's skin crawl with anger, after doing rounds and searching for Cassie Boyle's brother in the woods, he and Will returned to Abigail and Alana at the house. 

"We should leave for now, tomorrow we can continue." Said Alana to them.

As they walked to the car, Hannibal's phone rang and when he looked at the screen he saw Audra's name.

"Audra, I was just thinking about you." 

"Is anyone close enough to hear me?" She whispered.

"Yes, the trip was calm and pleasant, you worry too much." Hannibal finished with a chuckle, already noticing how his reaction made Alana frown slightly, they were already inside the car and she was driving. Soon his daughter gave a sigh and spoke in a more audible voice.

"I just wanted to be sure father, I've been doing some research on where to buy the next ingredients for the dinner party and I've found the perfect place."

"Ah that is good, but please don't go without me, I need to be sure it's good enough." He would have to know if the person Audra chose was indeed fit for the role. 

"I'll call you again later with more information. Send my regards to Will." He knew she was grinning and he couldn't help but give a small grin himself.

"Of course, goodbye my dear." 

As he put his phone down there was a small silence, broken by Will. 

"How is she? I forgot to ask about what happened that night." Hannibal noticed with delight that his voice was a bit worried . 

"She is fine, told me to send you her regards." Will gave a small smile at that. 

"Who was that?" Abigail asked, soon followed by Alana who clearly appreciated the chance to distract the girl after going to her house. 

"Yes, we are being left out here." Said the woman jokingly. 

As they were already close to their destination Hannibal, still smiling said. 

"My daughter."

The car gave an abrupt stop and Alana turned to him, hair flowing around and a shocked expression on her face.

"You have a daughter?!"

Her sudden reaction made Will and Abigail laugh together, Hannibal gave a small chuckle. 

Well, if there was a moment to make Abigail have a positive image of Audra, this was it. With this thought in mind Hannibal began the long task of speaking about his daughter.

Now that the pieces were all present, her role had officially begun. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> YES! From now on the game will be more intense since Abigail was the last piece Hannibal needed, I'm thinking about jumping a few chapters of the series so that the story won't be heavy or take too long, sure it is a slow build but I don't want it to be TOO slow.  
> Ideas and critics are always welcome and thank you so much for reading.


	10. O Peso da Responsabilidade

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alana meets Audra, Jack is almost giving up, invitations are made and the Ripper attacks again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! It's been a long time and I'm so sorry for that, college has been rough and I've been studying a lot so there has been no time to think about this fic much, I will try to update it as fast as I can ok? Thanks for your patience and for reading.  
> As usual I own nothing. Good reading!

"And then a big fat cut to black."

Will was tired, worried and on edge. Alana and Hannibal had been attacked by Nicholas Boyle, soon after he went after Abigail but luckily she managed to get away from him.

"Where is Abigail?" Alana asked.

"Lecter took her to the Hotel." Will heard himself speak.

"Scratched Nicholas Boyle before he ran out the back door. Blood on her hands matches the tissue we pulled from Marissa Schuur’s mouth." 

Will couldn't listen to any of that anymore, he was tired and just wanted to back to his house and dogs, more words were being said but he just didn't care, as soon as he got up to leave Jack stopped him, asking where he was going. 

"I want to go home."

And home he went.

#

Two more days passed after what happened. Nicholas Boyle was still missing and they still couldn't understand the reason why the man killed Marissa Schuur, but that was why Will, Alana and Hannibal were at Jack's office right now. 

Well, that and the Ripper. 

"There has been no third victim yet, Will I need everything you have on his last kill as fast as you can give me."

With a heavy sigh he nodded, quickly receiving a worried look from Alana and a small sigh from Hannibal. 

They acted like it was his choice.

Really it wasn't. 

Jack was about to speak again when they were interrupted by an agent at the door. 

"Sir? Forgive me for interrupting, but there is a young woman here asking for doctor Lecter."

"Anything to say to that doctor?" Asked Jack with an amused but still slightly annoyed expression. 

"I have an idea of who it may be yes." 

"Very well, send her in." Jack sat down a bit, it seemed like he was glad for the opportunity to stop thinking so much for just a moment. 

After a moment Audra walked into the room with an authority that mirrored Hannibal , she was wearing black jeans with an equaly black trench coat that went down to the middle of her tighs, her hair was set loose and she was carrying something. Will couldn't control the smile that came onto his lips, already the girl was dressing in a more respectable manner, more like her father, she noticed his smile and gave him a small one nodding. 

Hannibal got up from his chair, subconsciously Will got up as well, he felt silly for doing it, but approached the girl along with the doctor, he stood at her right and her father at her left. Lecter put one hand at the small of her back, giving him a small smile and turned to Jack and Alana.

"Allow me to introduce you all to my daughter, Audra Lecter. " 

He soon began to introduce her to everyone in the room, Alana was staring at the girl, mouth slightly opened as if she couldn't believe it. Her eyes began moving between Hannibal and Audra quickly, Will expected that. 

Was he like that when they first met? 

He hoped not. 

She seemed to catch herself and got up extending a hand and introducing herself, now the stares were a bit more discreet, but still there. When Jack got up he smiled amicably and said a small 'How do you do?' and quickly got back to his chair. 

Was he...?

Yes, he was back to reading the files about the Ripper case, Lecter's daughter already forgotten. 

Only you Jack. 

"Father you forgot this." She handed him a suitcase, and by the way Hannibal's eyes lit up it was important, gratefuly he took it murmuring a thank you. 

"Well, I'll go now, I must have interrupted something important. It was a pleasure to meet you both." She nodded to Jack and Alana smiling and turned to her father, kissing his cheek and, like she usually did, approached Will and kissed his cheek as well. Right after that she left. 

Both men returned to their seats. 

"That was your daughter." Alana asked a bit dazed.

"Yes."

"She must be... what? 20 years old?"

"Yes."

"Oh my god." Will couldn't help but to smile at Alana's expression, her hands were on top of her tighs, eyes a bit wide and mouth opened, she was blinking fast and her head was shaking a bit. 

It was adorable.

Well, maybe too adorable, for Lecter was throwing her one of his gentle looks. 

Huh. 

His smile died a bit as he felt a frown forming, something ugly was curling inside his stomach at the sight, the worst part was that he was self aware of his feelings, he knew what this was and it was ridiculous. He looked at Jack's table, frown still in place and tried to ignore it, until Jack's loud cough made him look up and stare at the agent's face, he had an amused grin on his lips. 

Great, just what he needed.

"Now, if we may..."

"SIR!"

"WHAT?!" Jack was now standing, facing the poor agent at the door. 

"They found a body sir, they think it's the Ripper."

The silence was inevitable, everyone looked at Jack with wide eyes waiting for the storm to burst, but the man made something far worse than anything any of them could imagine. 

His shoulders fell, a sad and defeated expression took hold of his face as he walked calmly towards the door. 

"Get everyone ready to go to the crime scene." His voice was empty, he had failed. Another person wouldn't be returning home that night because he was not enough to catch this monster, he failed like he failed his wife, Miriam Lass, Will and himself. All he could do was wait and he was not ready for that, not now.

Will's empathy truly was a curse. 

#

The crime scene was silent, what hope there was left in them slowly disappeared, leaving only resignation and defeat. Of course they would be back on their feet, but now? 

They were all destroyed.

Will saw Beverly taking some pictures of the body, when she saw him coming she said nothing, letting her expression speak for her. 

'This sucks but it's not your fault, be strong.'

He nodded and paid attention to the body for the first time since he entered the room. 

It was a man, again there were hooks on the body holding him in a bowing position. The hooks were distributed around his back, neck and head, his right hand had only one in its back to hold it in the air. The man's left hand was pressed to his chest and fixed there with a long metal nail. He was wearing a tuxedo, the only dirty place on it was its front which was full of blood, outside of that everything on him was clean just as everything around him.

The Ripper was mocking them, waiting for applause as his art has come to an end once more.

Will gave a sigh and looked at Jack. 

"Evebody out."

\- x - x - x -

I punch him on the throat and gag him, until now he didn't know or suspect I was here, I didn't want him to, his knees and his forearms are broken first, this worthless being who was infesting the earth with it's stench cannot move or speak, but he can listen to me while I tell him what I have prepared for him tonight. Blindness is not an option, I need to see his fear.

His tongue is the first thing to go, a bit difficult considering the gag, but the man is still disoriented and the pain on his body is keeping him quiet enough. The first cut I make makes this pig squirm, he is trying to defend himself but his arms and legs can't move. It's amusing.

The heart is the next to go, one long cut under his ribs I put my hand inside this thing and hold something beautiful. Life quickly pulsating on my hand. The man is shaking now, but with one swift move I remove the heart. He is dead. 

Putting him in position is complex, dressing the man with such elegant clothes he would never have had in life given his insignificance lifts his anger. Even dead this pig was unworthy.

It's complicated to put him up, but in no seconds 15 hooks on his back alone suspending his whole body up and giving it support. I put one more hook on his right hand , holding it in the air, his other hand I fix on his chest with a iron nail strong enough to keep it there.

This was not about the body, this was about me. 

I have transcended, I am elevated.

I am the show and this is my closing act for the season.

This is my design.

\- x - x - x -

"Jack?" Will called and in no time the man was there.

"So?"

"It's the Ripper, but something is off."

"What do you mean?"

"I feel the Ripper, see the pattern, but something about this kill makes it different, it's like a tribute to something or someone, like he was seeking praise to himself and not the art."

That was definetly not what Jack wanted to hear right now, but he nodded.

"We need any detail we can get. You can go now Will, we can take it from here."

Jack was telling him he could go? 

The man truly was thinking about giving up. As he got out he saw the hour. 

Shit he was late for his 'therapy', quickly he called Hannibal.

"Will."

"I'm sorry."

"I understand, I was there after all when Jack received the news, if you wish we can reschedule today's session."

"That won't be necessary I am relatively close to your office, I'll be there in no time."

"Very well, until then Will." With that he hung up and Will hurried.

#

"He kept the pattern as a mokery."

"What pattern?"

"The hooks, which parts of the body were broken and so forth. The interesting thing is that he didn't elevate this victim, it was all about him."

Hannibal crossed his legs and gave a smalll sigh.

"How is Jack?" Now Will lowered his head.

"He is giving up, slowly but surely."

Hannibal suddenly got up and approached him, Will looked up to his face.

"May I offer you a glass of wine? The day has been rough and I believe it would help."

"Yes please." Will answered a bit quickly.

As Hannibal poured the wine he spoke calmly. 

"There is an event that me and Audra will attend, an opera. She suggested I invited you and I agreed." Hannibal gave him his glass smiling.

"Opera?"

"Yes."

"With you and Audra?"

"Yes."

"I don't have anything to wear."

"Easily arranged."

Will gave a sigh, looked at the floor and nodded, it would be good to forget everything for a bit and enter Hannibal's world if only for a moment. 

"Excelent, it will be two days after the dinner party for Audra."

"Oh? You haven't told me that you'd set the date already."

"Too much happened this last few days."

Hannibal now gave Will a small grin and something flickered in his eyes, the empath's stomach gave a small flip at the sight and he quickly busied himself with the wine.

"We've had little time to prepare, only now we have all the ingredients."

"I'm glad." Will said daring to look upon those eyes again, they were fixed on him, not gentle but teasing in a way that the agent was not accustomed.

"So am I."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for reading! The opera was something I've always wanted to write and next chapter there will be it! YES! Any idea you guys have tell me please, critics are always welcome as well. Thank you so much for reading and again, sorry for the delay again.


	11. O Jantar

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Lecters take Will to a tailor, Hannibal decides the teasing is over, Chilton is acting like Chilton and the dinner party finally happens.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok, so this is extremely long, I don't know if you guys are confortable with that, if not tell me ok? There will be no opera on this chapter, I tried to put it in here but that made the chapter gigantic compared to what it already is so I will be putting it on the next chapter.  
> Hannibal and Audra speak a bit of Lithuanian and Italian on this fic, so I'll put the translation with the exact phrases I used on Google Translator both here and at the notes at the end.
> 
> AT THE TAILOR:  
> Hannibal: Do you have a shirt for him?  
> Tailor: Yes of course, any preference for colour?  
> Hannibal: Dark blue, to bring out his eyes.  
> Tailor: I'm done with the measurements, I'll leave you two and check on Audra.  
> Hannibal: Yes, thanks you.
> 
> Audra: Don't lose your focus father, Will cannot become more dangerous than he already is, don't give him that strength.  
> Hannibal: Of course. 
> 
> AT THE DINNER PARTY: 
> 
> Audra: Son of a bitch.
> 
> I own nothing. Good reading!

The white stag was standing in front of him, puffing cold air on his face, its nose touched his cheek gently and for the first time in weeks he felt confort, as if nothing else could harm him.

Not Jack and his crime scenes. 

Not Alana and their confusing relationship.

Not even Hannibal and his gentle looks. 

He closed his eyes, letting himself trust the beast and caressed its nose with his cheek, getting closer and raising his hands to grab the fur at its neck. The stag made a soft noise and rested its head on his left shoulder. 

Will was surprised when he felt something else touching him on his right shoulder. He was so relaxed that the opening of his eyes was slow as was the turning of his head to the right, there resting over his shoulder and inhaling deeply was the black stag. It was almost a relief to see him, something familiar to hold onto. 

Slowly, Will removed his right hand from the white stag and pressed it to the ravenstag's face. The sense of peace he had at that moment couldn't be described in words.

And it was with that sense of peace that he woke up in front of Hannibal's doorstep.

What the actual fuck?

Will looked around confused, there was no sign of Winston with him this time, it was cold, he was underdressed and his feet hurt because probably he walked for hours to get here. 

He had no other choice but to ring the doorbell, after a few minutes a completely dishevelled Hannibal opened the door, he had an adorable annoyed look on his face, his hair was going to every possible direction and his eyes were blinking, trying to adjust to the light. 

"Will?"

And his voice was rough.

If asked, he would say that any colour on his face was caused by the cold.

The current terrible cold. 

"Hello, hum... I may or may not have sleepwalked here, can I come in? It's really cold." He said while hugging himself.

"Yes please forgive me, come inside. I'll get something to get you warm." He went somewhere inside the house and returned with a blanked which he quickly put around Will's shoulders, if his touch lingered neither of them commented on it. 

As he took Will to a couch Hannibal spoke quietly with him.

"Will, you walked a great deal, I think I should take a look at your feet, now please indulge me and tell me where and who you are."

Will gave a heavy tired sigh and answered. 

#

"My name is Will Graham, I am in Baltimore, Maryland at your house."

Hannibal was ecstatic, any sort of sleep he felt before was gone. Tonight Will's mind had told him what the man himself still could not. 

Hannibal Lecter owned Will Graham.

Always with a gentle hand he took hold of the empath's foot, examining it, mostly it was just dirty but there were a few cuts that needed tending to. After getting his first aid kit, Hannibal spoke again while tending to the wounds, kneeling in front of Will.

"This brings me memories."

"Oh? Many people come sleepwalking to your house? Good to know I'm not alone."

Lecter chuckled a bit. 

"No no, it was a long time ago, Audra was a small girl and we still lived in Lithuania, she cut her foot and I had to take care of it." 

Will stayed in silence for a moment after this, then with an uncertain voice he spoke again.

"Can I ask something that is probably intrusive? You don't have to answer it if you don't want to."

"Of course."

"Where is Audra's mother?"

Hannibal's hand that was now at Will's heel stopped there and just held.

"She died during labour, it was raining a lot that night, hence Audra's name."

"Oh?"

"It means storm, I found it fitting."

"Hannibal... I'm sorry, I shouldn't have asked."

Oh sweet William, of course the doctor didn't mention that he was already planning on killing his now deceased wife, her death during labour was destiny's sweet gift for him. He detested the woman, their marriage had been one of his uncle's ideas, the man was obsessed with heirs and for that he had to stand a rude and arrogant woman for almost a year.

He was truly glad that Audra didn't inherit her mother's personality.

"It's fine Will, a long time has passed and any old wound is now a scar, it doesn't bother me anymore." As he finished his phrase he moved to the other foot and heard Will's soft chuckle, amused he looked up at the man. 

"Ticklish?"

"Yes, sorry about the laugh."

"It's fine." There was a smirk on Lecter's face, instantly Will's expression got wary.

"Don't you dare."

"I wouldn't risk waking Audra up."

"Oh right, did you leave her room's light on this time?" Will said that with a reprehensive tone that amused Hannibal.

"Yes." Answered the doctor, glad to see how deeply Will's paternal feelings for his daughter have developed. There was also a warm feeling on his stomach at this, he was pleased to see the beginning of their little strange family.

"That's good."

The silence that followed wasn't unconfortable, Hannibal was finished with Will's feet in no time and both man stayed there talking in the living room, neither aware of the time until a yawning Audra came down the stairs, her long curly hair was a mess and her eyes half closed, she came into the living room scratching her head and saying in a tired voice. 

"Good morning father..." Now the girl was frowning. "... and Will?" 

"Hey." Said the empath waving, he was grinning at her appearence.

"Good morning Audra, please go set the table for breakfast." Hannibal was smiling.

"Sure." And away she went. 

During breakfast they were all sitting at the table, Will was wearing one of Hannibal's robes sitting at his right side while Audra sat at the left. 

"Will, are you coming with us to the tailor today?" The girl asked the empath.

"The tailor?"

"Oh yes, forgive me Will I forgot to tell you, me and Audra will be going to the tailor this afternoon."

"You should come with us Will, I will be commissioning two dresses for the dinner party and the opera, your opinion would be appreciated."

"It would be a good oportunity for you to get something too Will." Said Hannibal smiling at him.

"Hum... Is it really necessary?" 

"You did say you had nothing to wear." 

With a sigh Will agreed, Jack was stil affected by the Ripper case so there was no work to be done today. And who knows? It may be a nice change.

#

"Is this REALLY necessary?"

Hannibal was incredibly amused, he took Will and Audra to a tailor he trusted to make a good work, a small place that could only be found if you knew where to look. The old italian woman who worked there had no knowledge of english, so only Audra and himself could understand her.

Will?

He was currently having his measures taken by said woman, Audra was in another room with her assistant. 

The empath was completely out of his element, trusting Hannibal to know what to do or not to do. It was a condition that truly pleased the doctor. Hannibal turned his smiling face to the lady and said in a perfect italian.

"Avete una camicia per lui?

"Sì, naturalmente, alcuna preferenza per il colore?"

Will had a lost expression on his face as he stared at them when suddenly Hannibal got close to him. The doctor smiled at the inhale the agent gave, his eyes got wide and his mouth opened a bit, Hannibal put one hand gently on his chin and raised his head towards him, when he spoke his voice was low and rough.

"Blu scuro, per far risaltare gli occhi." 

The woman stared at him and rose up speaking up at Hannibal, who was still distracted with a certain pair of eyes.

"Ho chiuso con le misure, vi lascio due e verifico Audra."

"Si Grazie." With that the woman left and Hannibal let go of Will's chin slowly, the empath still had a slightly dazed expression on his face and Hannibal couldn't lie to himself and say that he was thinking about manipulating Will at that moment, this was not good.

He was allowing himself certain freedoms that he shouldn't have.

"What was that about?" Will asked, his voice was sweetly rough and Hannibal couldn't resist the small look at the man's lips at that, Lecter gave a sigh and returned his eyes to the empath's smiling a bit. 

"I asked her about shirts and she wanted to know what colour, I said dark blue. It brings out your eyes." 

"It does?" Will gave a small step closer to him. 

"Yes."

They were close now, it was exactly what Hannibal wanted even if the doctor couldn't remember at the moment why and he didn't care, he just wanted to...

"Father? Could you come here for a moment please?" 

That was Audra. 

Will blinked fast and gave one step back, Hannibal couldn't have that, even if the girl had interrupted a very important moment, she helped him regain some sort of control over his actions, that were now back in focus on his original objective. 

"I will be right there Audra, just a moment."

Before the empath could get much further away Hannibal put a hand on his elbow making him stop, he looked at him exhaling. 

"She can wait." 

"Hannibal what..."

But he couldn't finish that sentence for the doctor got closer to him, his left hand found its way to his waist while the other was at his jaw, with a thumb caressing his cheek. Will's eyes got wide with the proximity and the doctor found that it was time to end this teasing game he began and closed the distance. 

Hannibal tried to mantain the kiss clinical and at first it was, but Will made a small sound and in almost a shy way touched his waist, the hand he had on the empath's jaw moved to his hair and he tightened his hold ono his waist. He moved his lips over Will's, losing himself in that soft moment, but he couldn't let it go too further.

Will was far more dangerous than he imagined.

With great strength of will Hannibal ended the kiss, both of them had their eyes closed and a slightly heavy breathing. Lecter caressed his cheek again softly and touched their noses lightly, almost in a whisper he said.

"Forgive me."

"There is nothing to forgive." Will answered with a rough and dazed voice.

"Then think about it, there is much to consider after all."

"Father?" Came Audra's voice again.

Will touched his forehead to Hannibal's and said with a small grin.

"I will... You should probably go." 

The doctor gave the empath one last smile and turned, going inside the other room, Audra was sitting by the tailor's side, they were watching the drawings the older woman had done for both dresses. As soon as Audra saw her father the expression on her face hardened a bit and she excused herself to the lady, getting closer to him and speaking in their mother language with a calm voice. 

"Negalima prarasti savo fokusavimo tėvą, Will negali tapti labiau pavojinga nei jis jau yra, nereikia duoti jam, kad jėgų."

"Žinoma." Hannibal gave the girl a small nod, he had to admit that she was right, Will was dangerous and he couldn't lose his focus, giving the man such power over him so soon was at least preocupying, he would have to be more careful in the future. 

But now was not the time to worry about such things, he had a dinner party to think about.

#

The night had finally come, the dinner in her honour. 

Audra was preparing herself in her room, she was already wearing the dress she comissioned for this night, it was a simple and elegant knee length sleeveless dress with a fitted bodice, scoop neckline and a bow with a rhinestone brooch on the waistline. The wine colour in it added to the sense of drama and romance she was after, her hair was in a messy updo, with curls fighting each other for a place at the spot light, her makeup was simple with just a bit of black around the eyes.

A few people would be coming tonight, agent Jack Crawford and his wife, Alana Bloom, some collegue of her father named Chilton or something and of course Will.

Audra was looking foward to this evening, taking in consideration the fact that her father had already made moves on Will it made things much more interesting knowing that the first object of Will's admiration would be present as well: Alana Bloom.

Her father had already told her not to poke, she wouldn't of course, but the temptation was imense. 

She was just finishing the last details on her hair when she heard her father's voice calling from downstairs, she got up and went to him. 

"Yes father?"

"The guests will be arriving shortly and as you can see I am a bit occupied, I need you to entertain them until the dinner is ready."

She smiled at that, her father was above all a perfectionist and it was almost adorable how hard he worked so everything would be just that, perfect.

"Of course."

A few moments passed and the first knocks on the door were listened. 

She was anxious to get to the door and open it, when she did Alana Bloom was standing there with a man at her side.

"Doctor Bloom, it's a pleasure to see you again. Please come inside."

"Hello and you can call me Alana if you want, there is no need for such formalities." Then the woman turned to the man at her side and introduced him. "This is Doctor Frederick Chilton."

"It's a pleasure to finally meet the misterious Lecter, I can only wonder why we hadn't heard from you sooner my dear. "

She barely met the man and wanted him dead. He was poorly fishing for information while trying to be pleasing but only managing to be rude and obnoxious, he was weak and inferior and had no place in here. 

She already knew why her father sent her to entertain the guests.

With a heavy sigh Audra put on a polite smile towards the man while extendind her hand in greeting, she really should have expected the wet kiss he gave it. 

After tonight he would be hers to kill.

"It is a pleasure Doctor Chilton, I would hate to destroy such mistery so soon to everyone, now if you both would please come with me to the dining room."

In they went. Alana sat at the left seat beside her father's chair, perhaps out of habit most of all, still it was Audra's place and if she wanted Will to seat beside her father she would have to sit at his right, keeping a place for the empath to seat later, that meant she would be dining besides Chilton. 

"So... Audra, are you enjoying the city?" Asked Alana, the woman was clearly as curious about her as Chilton was, she was only a bit more subtle about it. 

"Yes, it's been a good experience so far." 

"And how long do you intend to stay if I may ask?" That was Chilton. 

As long as I want to you worthless pig.

Of course she didn't say that though.

"Well, father and I have been apart for far too long, I intend to stay with him for as long as I can." 

"And for how long were the two of you apart?" Asked Alana. 

"7 years." She barely finished speaking and there was knocking on the door again, it was Jack and his wife, they both made an imposing and beautiful couple, she could understand her father's respect for both of them at that moment. 

"Agent Crawford."

"Please, tonight I'm only Jack, allow me to introduce you my wife Bella."

"I'm pleased to meet you Bella, I must say your name is fitting, I'm Audra."

"Thank you, though my name is Phyllis, Bella is more of a nickname Jack has given me."

"Oh of course, my mistake. Please come in, doctor Bloom and Chilton are in the dining room."

"Where is Hannibal?" Jack asked while he sat in front of his wife at the table.

"Father is with the rest of the staff preparing dinner."

Their little group began talking, Alana trying to get information from her, her curiosity barely masquerated by her politeness, she must have experience in dealing with her father. Even if she could respect the woman, Audra had to admit that she was annoyed by her at the present moment. 

"And where were you? I mean, Hannibal has been my mentor and he never mentioned you."

Audra's patience was running thin so she made a slight slip.

"I'm sure father couldn't mention me due to the nature of your professional relationship, that would have been inappropriate. As for your question I was in Lithuania with the rest of the family."

"Audra."

That voice which was apparently so warm and gentle held a coldness in it that only Audra could perceive. 

'Don't be rude' it said.

"Hannibal it's good to see you." Jack and the others got up to compliment him, leaving Audra alone and ashamed at herself. 

"Audra?" 

"Yes doctor Bloom?"

"I wanted to apologize, I know I've been making a lot of questions and I'm probably annoying you even now so I'll just shut up and enjoy the evening." Audra gave a small chuckle at that.

"There is no need to apologize, but thank you." She heard the door. "Excuse me doctor."

Audra practicaly ran to the door, excited about seeing the empath. He was indeed far more dangerous then it seemed, already making her and her father have these soft feelings for him. The door was opened to reveal Will, his hair was the same but his suit was something else entirely. It was a navy blue suit fitting him perfectly, his shirt was a tone clearer than the rest of the attire but still dark. 

He looked dangerously attractive. 

Good.

"Will, I'm so glad you came." She said that already close and kissing his cheek, the man gave a small smile and replied.

"Wouldn't miss it, you look beautiful Audra."

"Thank you, now come, everyone is at the dining room." She closed the door and they got inside, the girl noticed her father's expression when he saw the agent, his eyes opened just a bit just as his mouth, his back straightened and that subtle gentleness was there. He inspected the suit on the other man and if the expression on his face said something it that he was very pleased.

Will had not spoken with any of them since that day at the tailor, the man was probably confused and stopped to truly think about what had happened that day between Hannibal and himself, clearly he was having doubts and the reason of such feeling?

"Alana." The man's eyes were shining as he looked upon the woman, he was relaxed and with a gentle expression, said woman looked up to him and allowed her eyes to roam over the man, an almost shy look took over her face as she smiled at him.

"Will, so good to see you."

Huh.

It was mutual.

One look at her father made her anger grow, there was genuine sadness there, of course no one else could see it but she was raised by the man, he was an open book to her. He felt something for the empath, that was no news for her, but she couldn't have predicted something so deep, probably not even he could. With one last look at Will and Alana talking to each other (he didn't even say anything to her father until now, not even a hello), Audra got close to the seat she had been saving for the empath and sat down, now the only place avaliable was at Chilton's side. Hannibal noticed the setting and frowned at her.

He wanted to wait, she wanted to act.

If Will refused their family, she would show him just what he was losing. He was already in deep enough to feel the impact of it.

Hannibal coughed gently to call for the attention of everyone, making them sit on their places, when Will went to sit at Lecter's side he saw Audra there, the girl smiled at him a bit and turned to the glass of wine she had in hands, the man stood there for a second before sitting beside Chilton.

"I thank you all for coming tonight, as you well know this little gathering is in honour of my dear daughter, Audra. It's been seven years since I'd last seen her, with only 13 years old begging me not to leave her behind." They all laughed or cooed.

'Šunsnukis.' Thought Audra. 

"Tonight we dine for the reunion of our most loved ones. To family." They all raised their glasses.

Food was served and people's reactions were as expected, humming about how good it was, she was paying attention to Will at the corner of her eyes, she and her father began interacting in a more open manner, after a particular comentary of Bella about how alike they both were in appearence, Hannibal grabbed Audra's hand softly and took it to his lips kissing it. 

Will watched it all with a soft look of longing, not strong enough to be noticed if you were not looking.

She heard her father saying something about the meat being a rabbit and then Jack said the jewel of the night.

"He should have jumped higher then."

Both Audra and Hannibal laughed at the same time at the small joke, Will (that was currently trying to avoid Chilton) looked up abruptly, not used to them laughing so openly and kept looking even after Hannibal said still smiling.

"Yes, he should have."

Noticing Audra's eyes on him Will smiled uncertainty a bit, of course he would have noticed something was wrong so the girl smiled back at him like she usually did and blinked, the man relaxed slightly. 

She wanted him to value their gift to him, to make him see what he could lose if he was not careful, not to completely push him away. 

From tomorrow on he would have all the more reason to stay with them.

Tomorrow she would become Abigail's best friend after all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TRANSLATIONS
> 
> AT THE TAILOR:  
> Hannibal: Do you have a shirt for him?  
> Tailor: Yes of course, any preference for colour?  
> Hannibal: Dark blue, to bring out his eyes.  
> Tailor: I'm done with the measurements, I'll leave you two and check on Audra.  
> Hannibal: Yes, thanks you.
> 
> Audra: Don't lose your focus father, Will cannot become more dangerous than he already is, don't give him that strength.  
> Hannibal: Of course. 
> 
> AT THE DINNER PARTY: 
> 
> Audra: Son of a bitch.
> 
> I hope you guys liked it, the opera will be at the next chapter for real this time, so yey! Audra is far more impulsive than Hannibal, she controls herself well enough though, her main objective by pushing Will away a bit is to force him to make a decision regarding her father. Thanks so much for the kudos and comments, you are amazing. Ideas and critics are always welcome.
> 
> The dress Audra was wearing: http://www.missesdressy.com/dresses/designers/mon-cheri/social-occasions-by-mon-cheri/28872  
> Her hair: http://i.ytimg.com/vi/jLNY1vbesuA/hqdefault.jpg


	12. A Ópera - Part 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Abigail meets her new best friend, Audra is sassy with Alana, Will realizes he's been rude and the opera finally happens.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> THE OPERA! Ok, so I divided this chapter in two parts, because I love Tobias and I need time and space to work on him, especially with Audra involved (I still have to know how to include her in Tobias sequence).  
> Again there are some translations needed in this chapter, there you go.  
> AT THE OPERA  
> Hannibal: He's dangerous Audra.  
> Audra: I noticed father.  
> I own nothing, good reading!

"So what are you? Doctor, psychiatrist or journalist?"

"Are those really the only people who come here?"

"The only ones allowed, so which are you?"

"I'm neither of those, I am Audra Lecter, I think you know my father?"

Abigail's eyes got a bit wide with recognition and a bit of fear, the girl still had in mind the fate of Nicholas Boyle and Hannibal's part in it. So far they hadn't had any trouble with her, but Audra still wanted to make sure the girl could be trusted. 

Her eyes were not clouded by responsability and affection like her father's was.

"Hannibal spoke about you once, you look older then I thought."

"Come on I'm 20 years old, it's not that much." Audra said with a more relaxed tone, with Abigail she would need to be less formal else the girl would associate her to her father more then necessary.

"I know it's just... Strange to meet you. I'm Abigail, though you may already know that."

"Yeah, father was suppose to come here as well but a patient called I think."

"And you are here... Why?" Asked the girl a bit defensive. 

"I was curious."

"About the daughter of the crazy cannibal?" Said Abigail with a tired tone and a sigh.

Oh if only she knew.

"No, it's just... Father told me about you once, said he thought we would get along."

That made Abigail look at her with wide eyes but keeping a calm face, her distress was obvious but still Audra could see value in her, she only needed some work. 

"What has he told you about me exactly?"

"Only good things I promise." She said with a smirk.

That made Abigail stop for a moment, the girl couldn't ask too many questions without making her doubt about Nicholas' murder obvious so she just nodded and changed subject.

"You and Hannibal have a strange accent, yours is stronger though. Where are you from?"

"Lithuania."

"Figures." Abigail let out a small laugh after saying that, making Audra frown a bit.

"What?"

"Of course you both would be from some exotic place, I mean have you seen your father?"

Audra had to give a laugh at that, her father was a very ostentatious man indeed, almost too much in her personal opinion, but she liked it.

Abigail was being clever, the girl couldn't have warmed so quickly with Audra to the point of making jokes like that, she was trying to get closer to the daughter of the man who held her fate inside his hands.

Audra liked her already. 

Her survival instincts were very good, even if she was unconsciously giving an opening that could and would be exploited completely.

"God I hope I'm not like that, I like to think I dress better."

Abigail got on her bed and crossed her legs, an easy smile on her face while she spoke.

"Don't worry, at least you look normal."

Good.

That's the idea.

#

Laughter coming from Abigail's room?

Alana hurried her pace, she had not been informed of any visitors today and couldn't have someone just talking to Abigail, who knew? It could be someone as bad as Freddie Lounds.

When she opened the door she gave a small sigh of relief at the sight that awaited her, Audra and Abigail were both sitting on the bed, legs crossed, talking and laughing at each other. Alana thought this could be good for the girl, some sort of contact with someone with her age, she wasn't sure about this person being Hannibal's daughter though, the man was already too involved and Abigail could associate...

"Doctor Bloom?" Said Abigail.

"They really are the only ones that come here huh?"

Abigail's laugh was what brought her back into the world of living, she really needed to stop thinking so much.

"Hello Abigail, Audra I had no idea you both knew each other." She said that while sitting on a chair beside the bed.

"We've only just met." Said Audra and that made no sense, Abigail had forts almost as strong as Will's it was highly unlikely that she just allowed Audra inside after just a few hours, something must have shown on her face for Audra gave her a small smirk and said.

"I guess we just clicked together." 

How had this girl read her so well? The doctor's eyes fixed on her and the wheels on her mind began to turn, her analysis hit a wall though, she didn't show a thing of what she was thinking.

"Audra was telling me stories of her and Hannibal when they were in Lithuania." Abigail to the rescue apparently, Alana was beginning to see that she was persona non grata in this place, but refused to back down and smiled.

"Now I am curious too, would you tell me Audra?" That was met with a smile and sudden gentle eyes, the change made Alana's eyes twitch lightly.

"I was telling Abigail about when father tried to teach me to play the theremin, I was 9 years old I think. Everything was fine in the beginning but then I made a sound so high and terrible that father cursed and let his wine fall." The girl laughed a bit and continued.

"It was the first time I had seen him curse so I stood up scared and hit the theremin, it fell and broke. There was silence and father started to laugh because it had been a present from his uncle and he hated the thing, he just bought a better one later. Of course I couldn't go near that one." Abigail was chuckling now and Alana had a smile on her face.

That image of Hannibal being a father was new to her, but she liked it, it gave the man some sort of humanity that he was lacking before. 

"Yeah... So I stick with the violin instead. I _can_ play the theremin though, after father left I learned it with Uncle Robert, but it's not really my favourite instrument." 

"Robert?" For her surprise it was Abigail who answered that.

"Hannibal's uncle, Audra stayed with him." They already knew that much about each other? 

"I had no idea Hannibal had an uncle." Audra frowned at that and said.

"Really? I thought you knew, you being a close friend to my father as you are." 

Was she trying to...? No she couldn't be, the girl had no reason to attack her.

"Well as you said before, our professional relationship may have stopped him from saying anything."

That made Audra smile.

"Ah yes, you two are colleagues, forgive me for assuming otherwise." There was such sincerity and politeness in the way those stinging words were spoken that Alana lost control over her features for a moment and let her eyes widen slightly as she stared at the girl. 

"Now if you two would forgive me I must go, I told father I would be gone for just a moment and stayed here during the whole morning." 

Abigail got up to accompany the girl to the door, when they got there they both hugged tightly and said their goodbyes, Audra was almost gone when she returned with a small yelp.

"Doctor Bloom, could I steal Abigail tomorrow? We were thinking about going to the mall or something, of course you would be welcome too if that was the case."

"What? Oh, yes of course, that would be good for her yes." Audra smiled at her and said.

"Thank you doctor Bloom, goodbye and have a nice day." Now she was gone.

Abigail returned to her bed and sat there, all forts she had returned with full force as she stared at Alana. The woman gave a small sigh and smiled. 

"It's good that you two are talking."

"Yeah, it's nice to have someone here just to see me sometimes." 

"That's good, you need that feeling of companionship."

Even if it's with someone like Audra. 

Alana would have to speak with Hannibal about that.

#

"How was your visit with Abigail?"

"I have a new best friend." Audra said that while giving him a kiss on his cheek and getting inside their house.

Hannibal smiled and closed the door. 

"Alana was there though." The girl said.

"I had noticed your sudden dislike for her, may I ask you why?" They both got inside the kitchen, Hannibal began preparing their lunch and Audra sat down by the counter.

"She is confusing Will and delaying his choice."

Hannibal had noticed the way Audra had acted at the dinner party, he knew what she had in mind, to push Will away just enough so the man would miss them, she wanted to force a choice and while he agreed with the reasons he had to make sure that she wouldn't antagonize them to the point of making Will follow another path then the one they set for him.

"Don't make any mistakes Audra, this idea of yours, be it as clever as it is, has to be dealt with delicately."

"Don't worry father, I'll be careful. What about you, are you ok?" That made Hannibal pause and turn to her.

"Why do you ask?"

"Well, she is confusing Will and delaying his choice." 

Ah, so she had noticed the depth of his feelings for the empath, sometimes he wished she wouldn't be so much like him. He gave a small smile and nodded looking to the floor. 

"Yes, I am fine."

"That's good... So, who are we having for lunch?"

"A butcher I had the misfortune of meeting."

"Seriously? Huh, the irony."

"Indeed, now please go set the table."

#

Will was still thinking about Hannibal's dinner party, he saw Alana, the woman as gentle and beautiful as ever, the Lecters, Jack, finally met his wife Bella. He won't include Chilton on that list of course, the man kept poking him during the whole night, trying to get as many information about him as possible. 

The evening had been pleasant enough, but he had felt something in the air that night, Audra was acting normally and suddenly the girl was distant, Hannibal was...

He...

Oh God.

He hadn't spoken with Hannibal during the whole night.

Now Will felt like shit. 

After that day at the tailor when Hannibal kissed him Will kept his distance. Not because he was angry or ashamed, but because the magnitude of what happened and could happen between them hit him with an imense force right after Hannibal disappeared into the next room. If they got involved Will would become a father figure to Audra and what kind of a father would he be? He was losing time and was instable to the point where he acted on his illusions. 

What if he hurt her somehow? He wasn't ready for such a thing. 

And Hannibal.

The man had such a established life, safe and sound, sorrounded by operas and dinner parties. All that would be destroyed the moment Will came in scene bringing with himself darkness, murder and suffering. He couldn't do that to the doctor, but he couldn't leave him either. He felt something for the man, that was obvious, his reaction after the kiss had been free and calm in a way he hadn't felt in a long time. That was what Hannibal brought out in him and Will wanted that, he wanted that sense of peace he had during that night when he and the doctor talked until morning, he wanted the domesticity and the easy smiles.

Will gave a sigh. 

There was still another point to his doubt: Alana. He still had strong feelings for the woman and couldn't get into a relationship with Hannibal without solving that first, she was almost as important to him as Lecter now.

In short, Will had to solve his messy life before initiating any sort of relationship with anyone. 

His thoughts were interrupted by his phone ringing, when he looked at the name on the screen he was slightly surprised.

"Hannibal?"

"Hello Will, the opera is tonight and I was wondering if you are still going?"

Will frowned a bit. "Why wouldn't I be going?"

"It's been a while since we last spoke, I just wanted to be sure."

"Oh... I'm sorry about that it's just..."

"Will, it's fine. If you are going know that me and Audra will be there at 19h. Good day Will."

He ended the call just like that. 

Will knew now that he REALLY fucked up and it was time to fix it.

#

He felt ridiculous.

Will still had no idea why he shaved his face but he had and he looked extremely younger, there was a delicacy on his features that he had always wanted to avoid and now it was all obvious and exposed. He was wearing his tuxedo that had arrived last night and it fitted him perfectly, walking around these people that he had never seen before should have been more difficult but no one knew him and he could move freely, almost as if pretending to be someone else.

He was currently holding a glass of wine walking near the entrance, the people were just talking and drinking right now, the opera had not started yet. Will spotted a clock on the wall.

18h55

He was growing restless, this was the second time he walked around the hall. That was until he looked at the entrance and saw the Lecters arriving. 

Hannibal and Audra made a striking couple, the man was wearing a tuxedo much like Will, but he had a certain presence that made him stand out in the crowd, an elegance that made Will give a heavy sigh. Audra was wearing a black long evening gown, it had a turtleneck and its wrinkles went down to her waist where it hugged her form tightly, its back were a bit open. Her hair, different from many of the women present was set loose, with two half-back braids at each side of her head that accompanied her hair all the way down to her hips.

After Will got his breath back he got closer to them, both Hannibal and Audra looked at him and stopped, eyes widening. The girl gave a smile and got closer, instantly putting a hand at his cheek.

"Will... You look so different like this." Soon she kissed him on the other cheek as she usually did. 

He had to admit that he had missed that. 

"I have to admit that I am out of my element tonight."

"Same here, it's been a long time since I've come to an event like this." She put her hands in front of her and gave him a small wink. "We'll save each other, now excuse me I'll look around for a bit, father." She gave a nod towards Hannibal and left.

The doctor got closer to Will and the empath gave a sigh.

"Hannibal."

"Will... Audra is correct, there is a new exposed beauty on your face now."

"She never said that."

"No she didn't." 

"Hannibal... About the dinner, I'm so sorry it was not my intention to be so rude to you. There are many things we need to discuss and..."

"William." Will stopped talking and looked at the other man.

"Later." He gave a small smirk towards Will and pointed to their seats, Audra met them midway and they all sat, the empath ended up between the Lecters. 

The music was starting.

This was not the kind event that he would go, but Will let himself feel the music, each letter, each emotion and note got to him in a way that he could not explain, he had closed his eyes he noticed, he felt a small hand closing in his own and opened his eyes and looked at Audra, the girl had a gentle expression and nodded towards Hannibal, the empath then looked at the doctor and was surprised to see him with tears in his closed eyes. 

Will gave in to the impulse to hold Hannibal's hand, at that moment nothing mattered to him, the world was only music. The doctor startled a bit and looked at him, Will had no idea what was appropriate to do right now, so he just gave a small smile and Lecter's hand a gentle caress with his thumb, to which the doctor answered by turning his hand and entwining their fingers.

They stayed like that for the rest of the presentation, up until the moment Hannibal and Audra rose to their feet to applaud, making the rest of the crowd follow suit. 

They got separated at some point, Hannibal was speaking to some people and Will and Audra were together walking through the place, the girl holding Will's arm.

"What did you think?"

"I think I need more hair on my face." Audra laughed at that. 

"I like it like that, you look elegant." 

Will laughed and said bowing his head mockingly. "Thank you my lady." 

She smiled and looked around her, giving him a small pull she started moving towards Hannibal, who was talking with an elegant woman in red, there were also two men there. 

"I see you have more admirers Hannibal dear."

"Ah, Mrs. Komeda allow me to introduce you my daughter Audra Lecter and my dear friend Will Graham."

"A daughter? Hannibal how could you hide something like that? How are you darling?" Audra smiled at the woman and inclined her head. 

"It's a pleasure." 

"Oh but you are a beauty, those cheekbones! I hope to see more of you my dear, now if you all would excuse me." 

While saying his goodbyes to Mrs. Komeda, Will noticed the little man besides Hannibal give him a hateful look and then give an interested one towards Audra, he blinked a few times trying to understand what was going on there when suddenly he felt the doctor's hand on the small of his back, and there it stayed. 

"And who may you be?" Asked Audra to the small man.

"I am Franklyn Froideveaux, Hannibal's patient." He said that looking at her with something akin to adoration on his face, the girl's right eyebrow got up and she shared a look with Hannibal.

"It's a pleasure Franklyn." She said that extending her hand, the man took it but held it for far too long before Hannibal coughed pointedly and he let it go. 

Hannibal was being overprotective.

Will gave a smile at that.

"Oh where are my manners, this is my best friend Tobias Budge." He introduced this Tobias man like a kid showing his new toy, Will was beginning to feel embarassed for Franklyn.

When Tobias got close Will's empathy got in scene and he almost gasped with the strength of the darkness he had in his eyes, this man was a killer and he was not even trying to hide, actually he was showing himself like a damn peacock. Budge was going for Audra and Will's first instinct was to get her far away from the man but he couldn't just show that he knew something, so he put a hand at the small of Hannibal's back making the man look at him, when he did, Will tried to let his expression tell him what he knew. 

He tried to ignore the fact that they were almost embracing each other now. 

It seemed to work for Hannibal gave a small sigh and his eyes got wary, but still had... Pride in them? Why would Hannibal be proud? The doctor leaned his head towards Audra and said in a low voice that only her and Will could hear. 

"Jis pavojingas Audra."

"Aš pastebėjau, tėvas." 

"It is not polite to speak a language we can't all understand. But forgive my bluntness I am Tobias." 

Or they thought they were the only ones that could hear it.

Will openly frowned at that getting an amused glance from Tobias. Audra extended her hand to the man and said with a smile. 

"Pleased to meet you Tobias." He took her hand and gave it a small kiss, looking directly into her eyes he spoke again. 

"Charmed." At the end of the word his eyes traveled from Audra towards Hannibal and that made Will's frown get deeper as well as his anger grow, involuntarily his hold on Hannibal's waist got tighter. 

"So... Did you enjoy the performance?" Franklyn asked the doctor, pointedly ignoring the rest of them.

Will gave a heavy sigh and shared a look with Hannibal.

This would be a long night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AT THE OPERA  
> Hannibal: He's dangerous Audra.  
> Audra: I noticed father.
> 
> Yey! I really liked writing Alana's POV in this, she is a lot more relaxed then any of the other characters so it was easier. I like to think that Franklyn would create an interest for any female version of Hannibal he could find, so next chapter there will be some awkwards moments. Ideas and critics are always welcome, thank you so much for reading!
> 
> The dress Audra was wearing(the black one): http://www.dhresource.com/albu_349210492_00-1.0x0/regular-party-queen-turtleneck-open-back.jpg
> 
> Her hair (imagine this black): https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/originals/2a/be/48/2abe487e89030ac70373fc539c82c1c5.jpg
> 
> Another angle for the hair: http://laceandbuckles.net/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/daenerys-targaryen-hairstyle.jpg


	13. A Ópera - Part 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Awkward moments at the opera, Beverly is awesome, an imaginary raccoon inside a chimney and Audra is in trouble.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry for the delay, any creativity I had died these last few days and only today I was able to write something that I liked. I hope you guys like it. Good reading!  
> I own nothing.

"His eyes kept wandering. More interested in you than what was happening on stage."

"Oh, don't say too much. You must leave something for us to discuss next week."

Hannibal noticed Audra biting her lower lip, face calm.

She only did that when she was trying not to laugh. 

He gave a sigh.

"What about you Miss Lecter, did you enjoy the performance?" Asked Franklyn to the girl, she gave him a kind smile and answered.

"I did, her technique was impressive." 

"Do you sing?" Asked him again, Hannibal allowed an amused smile to grace his face at Franklyn's insistance towards his daughter, he noticed Will to be having a bit more trouble in hiding his amusement, the man trying to hide his smile by drinking his wine.

"Unfortunately any skills I may have do not compare to the singer we saw tonight." Excessively polite. 

She was extremely annoyed.

Hannibal noticed Will's gaze gravitating towards Tobias, the man was beside Franklyn watching Audra with interest, he would be far more worried if he didn't know what his daughter was capable of, sure he was a bit bothered by it anyway but the empath didn't know about her so his distress was more obvious then his own, Hannibal had to act or else Will would reveal himself as a threat. 

So far Tobias has only paid attention to himself and Audra and Hannibal wanted to keep it that way.

He was sure his daughter would forgive him for this later.

"Ah, but you are being modest my dear. Audra has many talents, though one of the most distinct is in playing the violin."

That caught Budge's attention, the man's gaze focusing on her with a pleasant expression on his face. "The violin?" 

A musician then.

"Yes, I've been playing it for many years now." Hannibal smiled at the way she answered that, the girl was good at pretending, but some nuances could still be seen. The twitch on her eyes, the way her smile would be fixed on her face without movement or sincerity, such subtle details that made this situation far more entertaining. When Hannibal went to check on Will he saw the man staring at the entrance.

His eyes were a bit wide and he was holding his breath, when Hannibal followed his eyes direction he saw only the entrance and nothing more. Now the empath's eyes were following something through the hall, almost ignoring them all.

Interesting.

Hannibal had smelled what he suspected to be encephalitis on Will some time ago, their closeness made the doctor aware of the sleepwalking and eventual time loss, but hallucinations? These were news to him. 

It opened a whole new number of possibilities. 

"What's wrong with him?"

Franklyn.

Hannibal gave a sigh. 

"Excuse me Franklyn?" Audra distracted the man again. "I've been terribly rude by not asking about you, what do you do?" And the man was lost to her just like that.

Not Tobias though. 

"Does your friend need help?" 

"Everything is fine, no need for concern." Hannibal said with a smile and a nod, he then got close to Will and put a careful hand on his shoulder making the man give a small flinch.

"Will, do you wish to leave?" The younger man looked at him with lost eyes and was about to speak but was interrupted by Franklyn, who abruptly ignored Audra.

"You are leaving already?"

Will composed himself quickly and gave the man an apologetic smile and answered. 

"I'm sorry Franklyn, but we had plans for after the opera with a few friends and we cannot delay."

Franklyn's face was surprised for a moment and a bit hurt before he spoke again. "Other friends?"

"Yes, Hannibal if we leave now we may get there in time."

Oh how Hannibal admired this man, creating such a simple lie not only with the intention of saving them from both Tobias and Franklyn's unwanted company but also to hurt. Will's empathy had to have shown the man about Franklyn's lack of friendship and deep sense of inferiority, it was almost cruel of him to insinuate the existence of more acquaintances to the man and Hannibal was incredibly happy about this small but significant demonstration of darkness.

"Indeed we must leave soon, Franklyn, good to see you." 

They shook hands then, when Hannibal took Budge's hand he looked right into his eyes, they shared a bit of a moment before leaving. Vaguely he noticed Audra trying to slip away from Franklyn without being rude.

Already going to the exit Hannibal spoke.

"William, did you drive here?"

"No, I took a taxi."

"Would it be against you to dine with us tonight?"

"I... Sorry, I have work tomorrow and I wouldn't want to impose."

"You wouldn't be, well then at least allow me to take you home." The empath gave a distracted smile. 

"Of course."

When they got inside the car both Will and Hannibal startled a bit when they heard Audra's burst of laughter, they looked at the backseat. 

"I'm so sorry, it's just..." She gave another laugh. "Father where did you even find those people?!" She contained herself but was still chuckling, Will had an amused smile and looked at Hannibal.

"I have to agree with her on that." 

Hannibal gave a small laugh and turned to start driving.

"Don't be cruel both of you." 

"We don't even have to." Audra murmured and Will chuckled again.

The trip was calm, soft classical music was playing and Will was looking to the window when suddenly the man turned his head looking at something outside, when Hannibal looked on the mirrors he saw nothing.

"Will?"

"Did you... Did you see that?" He was a bit breathless.

"See what?"

"The... Nothing, it was nothing."

Hannibal smiled and continued to drive. 

"Very well."

The ride was quiet after that.

#

"You never told me you had a daughter."

"No, I didn't."

"Why?"

"I am your psychiatrist Franklyn, these sessions exists so we can discuss you and amplify your understanding about yourself as a whole, not to discuss my personal life."

"I just... I tried to get your attention at the opera, you pretended not to see me."

"It would be unethical to approach a patient or acknowledge in any way our relationship outside this room until that patient gives consent."

The man kept going on about how Hannibal needed a friend and about how he would be the perfect candidate for that.

Therapy with Franklyn was one of the few reasons Hannibal questioned his choice of becoming a psychiatrist. The man was obsessed with him, his ego was pleased of course, but it was utterly unconfortable. He couldn't stop relating to the man somehow, specially regarding Will, in his search for companionship he wondered sometimes if he seemed as needy as the man in front of him did.

Of course not.

"... and what does he have that I don't? I mean, it makes no sense and... Am I boring you?" 

"Of course not, please continue, of whom do you speak?"

"That man with you at the opera, your _friend_." 

Dangerous zone there Mr. Froideveux.

"What about him?"

"He's just so common, I truly believe you deserve better in a friend."

Hannibal gave a heavy sigh trying to calm himself.

"What do you believe your perception of him tell you about yourself?"

He had no other choice but continue this session. 

#

"It's not the Ripper."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes."

Will said that with a blank face staring at the human cello in front of him, somehow this death was familiar, as if this killer had already presented himself to the empath, but Will still couldn't point where such familiarity came from. 

His head was hurting him so he just took another aspiring and made himself look again. 

It was getting harder and harder. 

But of course he couldn't tell Jack that, wouldn't even make a difference. 

Back in the lab with the forensic trio they examined the body.

"The sulfur dioxide had the effect of hardening the vocal chords."

"Made them easier to play." Said Will, right after that Beverly spoke.

"You pick it up and can't play it, he'll put you down and play you."

"He took the time to whiten the vocal chords before playing them."

"It's not about whitening them; It was about, um, increasing elasticity."

"He treated the vocal chords the same way you treat catgut string."

Silence.

Beverly gave a small sigh.

"Yes, I played the violin."

"This takes a steady hand, a confidence. He's killed before." Will said that getting up. 

"Like this?"

"No, not like this. This is a skilled musician trying a new instrument." 

They were all staring at him with wary eyes, that was until Brian spoke.

"There must be something in this city's water." Zeller spoke after that. "We only get the strange ones right?"

While the men discussed the situation, Will got away for a bit, the music he'd played while inside this killer's head was still in his mind repeating itself over and over again, he felt a hand on his shoulder and turned to see Bev there. 

"I still can't get used to your face."

Will liked Beverly, she was sincere and treated him like a friend, not holding back with what she had to say, only sometimes he kind of wished she would. 

"I just shaved Bev, it'll grow." 

"All because of a date? You have something to tell me Graham?" She asked that with a grin making Will sigh.

"It was not... His daughter was there with us, I wouldn't consider it a date." 

"Using his daughter to make things smooth, clever."

"What? No, Beverly it's not..." 

"Will, it's ok I'm just messing with you, go and rest, I can tell you need it."

He gave a nod and looked down, he really needed to sleep.

#

The next day, Will thought about what Beverly spoke, he almost felt juvenile for thinking about something like this right after seeing a body of a dead man. His hallucinations started being more frequent of late, even at the goddamn opera he saw the stag walking through the people, he was unstable and for him that meant danger.

He couldn't risk anyone who was important to him like that. 

The fact that he had just opened his chimney searching for some animal that only existed inside his head was proof that he wasn't ready for anything right now. 

"What kind of animal was it?"

"It might've been a raccoon."

"Might've been?"

"Well, by the time I knocked a hole in the chimney, it climbed out the top."

Both Will and Alana knew the reality of the situation, but she had the pity not to bring it up.

"Well, at least it got out."

Will looked at her for a moment. 

"You avoided being in a room alone with me essentially since I met you. You were smooth about it."

"Evidently not smooth enough."

"And now you're making house calls?"

They were close, so close and this was real, at the moment this was the realest thing he knew there were no illusions and Will just closed the distance, he needed to feel grounded and Alana provided that. It was a great kiss and it did ground his mind but... 

There was something missing.

"I’m confused." She said when they parted.

"You have to stop thinking so much."

"Shouldnt you listen to your own advice?"

"What?" Asked the man giving a step back, when he looked at her face he saw pity and regret there which made him frown.

"I am attracted to you Will, besides the fact that I wouldn't be able to stop analyzing you if we were intimate because of my professional curiosity... I don't know if this would be good for you."

Will tried to pretend that those words did not affect him.

"If I were my patient, my advice to me would be: don't do this. I have to follow my own advice."

After an awkward farewell the woman left, Will knew that would be the most likely thing to happen of course, what he didn't expect was the fact that he was not as effected by it as he thought he would be, of course his pride was wounded but beyond that? Nothing.

Their story was not over of course, she would always have a place in his heart, it just wasn't as big as he thought it would be apparently.

Only now his grounding was gone and Will felt lost again.

He didn't know if it was the right choice or not and he didn't care, but there was only one place he felt like going now to find balance again. 

"Well, I kissed Alana Bloom."

"Well, come in." Hannibal let him inside the house and closed the door, he then guided Will to the kitchen. When they passed the dining room he noticed one extra plate on the table and one glass door open, which the doctor hurried to close.

"You have a guest?"

"A colleague, you just missed him."

"Didn't finish his dinner."

"An urgent call of some sort, he had to leave suddenly." They arrived at the kitchen, Hannibal quickly got busy and Will just stood there watching him.

Will noticed the way the man was colder, sure he was still kind with him, but he could see something was wrong. 

Of course Graham, come to the house of the man who obviously has feelings for you and speak about kissing someone else.

He wanted to hit his head on a wall.

Instead he asked.

"Where is Audra?"

"I haven't seen her since morning, she said she had business to deal with. Tell me, what was Alana's reaction?" He said that while preparing dessert.

"Hannibal... I'm sorry I shouldn't have come here." 

"Will." He said that with such finality that the empath stopped his fidgeting. "Tell me."

"She said she wouldn't be good for me, and I wouldn't be good for her."

"I don't disagree. She would feel an obligation to her field of study to observe you, and you would resent her for it."

"I know."

"Wondering then why you kissed her, and felt compelled to drive an hour in the snow to tell me about it."

"I... I needed to feel grounded, I've been having hallucinations. I thought I heard a raccoon in my chimney, I broke it to get him out but there was nothing, then Alana showed up and she was... Real."

"You feel unstable."

"Yes... Hallucinations, sleepwalking, losing time, I have it all."

Hannibal gave a sigh and stared at him, after a moment he spoke again. 

"Any news from the murder at the symphony?"

That was a great strategy to distract him.

"No, we just took the body to the lab for some tests, so far we only know that the man was played."

"There must have been some special treatment to the chords then."

Will got a dazed expression on his face before a sense of familiarity hit him again and anger swelled up inside him, he spoke with a hateful tone.

"Yes, had to open him up to get a decent sound out of him."

Hannibal gave a sudden intake of breath at that making Will snap out of the trance he was in and stare at the doctor, his pupils were dilated and a light surprised expression graced his face, the empath's eyes traveled down to his mouth only to see it slightly open. With a rough voice the doctor spoke.

"I... Hesitated telling you this, as it borders on a violation of doctor-patient confidentiality. A patient told me today he suspects a friend of his may be involved with the murder at the symphony."

Will's mind got on track with the information. 

A patient of Hannibal's had a possible killer friend and decided to tell him instead of going to the police?

Who would've done such a... Franklyn. 

Everything made sense now, Franklyn's friend had to be Tobias Budge, the man had so much darkness in him that Will realized what he was almost instantly, that's why the kill felt familiar. He had indeed already met the killer, he was a musician that was clear when the man showed such interest in the fact that Audra could play the violin and...

The empath stared back at Hannibal and spoke lowly. 

"It's Franklyn's friend, Tobias." 

"Yes his name was mentioned."

Will's breathing became heavy in an instant. 

"He knew Franklyn would tell you, he wanted you to know."

"I believe so, though I don't know his reasons."

"Hannibal... Where is Audra?"

"She is... Out."

The older man's eyes were wide when they stared at Will, it was an incredible experience to watch the understanding, the anger and the fear getting inside that stare. Instantly Will was on his phone calling Jack. 

"Jack! I need you to find someone _now_!"

He would kill Budge if anything happened to their girl.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Soooo, Audra is in trouble. Next chapter I'll have to explain exactly what I imagined happening with her and how, because she is a smart little thing and wouldn't be put down so easily. Some tense stuff are coming.  
> Any idea and critics are welcome, thank you all so much for reading this!


	14. A Captura

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Abigail trusts Audra with a secret, Tobias gets Audra and a rescue happens.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey! This chapter won't have anything about Will or Hannibal, it will be only about Audra's capture, it was hard to write this, even more so because of the fight scene. I hope you guys like it, if there are any mistakes on the html or regarding grammar tell me, I wrote this at 1AM after all. I own nothing.  
> Good reading!

It was dark.

She could see nothing no matter how many times she blinked.

Audra had to compose herself and think else her death would come faster then she tought.

This ridiculous trauma of hers was making things worse then they were suppose to be.

Her breath was heavy and her whole body shoke, it was a mistake to let Tobias see what made her weak like this, at the mere mention of putting her inside his trunk Audra lashed out in panic. That had been her ruin. 

Now there she was, tied down on top of a table, probably drugged if her confusion and dizziness were any indicators. She had no idea what the man gave her and when, all she knew it that she was fully aware of everything, she just couldn't do anything about it.

Her panic was getting to her, the shaking on her body was getting worse. Tobias was nowhere to be seen at the moment and as the girl was still in no condition to flee so she did the only thing she could and tried to focus her thought on what she knew.

_My name is Audra Lecter, I am in Baltimore, Maryland at Tobias Budge's basement._

It was a pitiful situation and she hated herself for allowing it to get to this point but she'd had no choice. 

If only Abigail was not there when it happened.

**-**

**48 HOURS BEFORE**

**-**

"Are you ready to go?"

"I'm not sure it's a good idea Audra."

"Why?"

"People would recognize me and... I'm not ready for that, we don't know what could happen."

She was probably dreading the idea of another Nicholas Boyle around.

Audra was leaning against the door of the room watching Abigail, the girl was pacing around nervous with the idea of going somewhere public, they were planning on going to the mall that morning with Doctor Bloom, something to distract the girl from all this. 

Audra would have prefered going without the doctor but she took her victories where she could.

"Well... We could talk to Doctor Bloom and say we prefer to stay here if you want to, we could walk around the woods for a bit."

Abigail stopped walking and looked at her, she was rubbing her hands in front of her, calculating her options. It didn't look like the public was her only problem and curiosity crept into Audra's head.

"Of course, I'd like that."

"Ok, I'll go talk to Alana."

On the way to the woman's car Audra had to think about Abigail's behaviour, the girl had been far more carefree the last time she had been there and now something was changed, she may be considering her relationship to Audra, maybe thinking about their sudden closeness, or she could be thinking about something else entirely, perhaps if she could be trusted or not, after all she was the daughter of the man who hid a body for her. 

With a sigh Audra decided to stop thinking so much and approached Alana, she was leaning on her car.

"Doctor Bloom? Abigail prefers to stay here today, I think she's still afraid of the public." 

The doctor gave a sigh and a nod. 

"I expected something like this, the idea was great and the fact that she considered going was already a step foward so it wasn't all in vain."

"I quite agree." 

Both Audra and Abigail turned when they heard that, there was a small woman walking towards them, her dramatic red curly hair bouncing around with every step she gave, there was an obvious false smile on her face. Audra noticed how Alana's face changed when she saw who it was, a rare grimace took hold of her expression.

Huh. 

The woman was close now, extending her hand towards Doctor Bloom, with a cinic soft tone she spoke.

"Doctor Bloom, so good to see you." She turned to Audra now. "I don't believe we've met, Freddie Lounds." 

Ah.

Everything made sense now. 

"Audra Lecter." She said taking her hand. 

The expression on Freddie's face changed and became interested in a second, eyebrows slightly going up as she asked. "Lecter? I don't suppose you have any relations with Doctor Hannibal Lecter?"

"What are you doing here Miss Lounds?" Said Alana already losing her patience with the woman. 

"A mere interview with Abigail, I have a proposition for her." She turned to Audra again. "So Miss Lecter, any relations to Doctor Lecter?"

This was a dangerous woman and Audra felt the need to show who was predator and who was prey by letting go of her mask for a moment, but one more look at Freddie's eyes showed her that any slip would be used as a weapon against her and her father. 

So, with a kind smile she gave a nod. 

"Yes, now Miss Lounds I'm so sorry but I need to go, excuse me." Her expression continued kind while she spoke that, the lack of information on her response hadn't gone unnoticed and Alana had a small smirk on her face, Audra turned to her and said with the same gentle smile. 

"Goodbye Doctor Bloom, I'll se you later." There was a small frown on the doctor's face now, she never expected Audra to be rude of course, but kindness coming from the girl was still something strange to her, they weren't exactly best friends. "Sure, see you later Audra."

At the courtyard Abigail was waiting for her, they both met and soon went into the woods. They were walking in the middle of the trees when suddenly the Hobbs girl stopped, with a low voice she spoke.

"Audra... Can I ask you something?"

Said girl stopped walking only then and turned, with two steps she was closer to Abigail. 

"Sure."

The girl was uneasy, her eyes kept wondering and blinking, she was nervous. 

"Did your father ever tell you about what happened at my house?"

Ah so this is what all this was about, she should have expected something like that.

Audra was curious about how long Abigail would lie to her so she just spoke.

"About Nicholas Boyle's attack? Yes, you were lucky he ran away and didn't hurt any of you."

Abigail turned her head to the left at that, an almost anguished expression on her face. 

This whole situation was incredibly amusing.

"You are Hannibal's daughter, you wouldn't do anything that could harm him right?"

Well she did put a knife on his shoulder the first time she saw him when she arrived but that wasn't the case.

"Of course not, he's my father." 

Suddenly Audra felt her hands being taken by the girl, she was shaking slightly and got closer, with tears on her eyes and a small trembling voice she spoke. 

"I need to tell this to someone and... I know I can trust you with this." She let go a heavy breath and finally said the truth.

"I killed Nicholas Boyle."

It was like a heavy burden left the young woman's shoulders, she visibly relaxed, even her eyes closed but the tears were still falling. Audra was having a problem with her expression, there was a smirk on her face that she wasn't able to stop and if the girl opened her eyes now it could be a problem. 

The solution was to hug her. 

Audra gave Abigail a strong hug, which was quickly returned. 

"Did he attack you?"

"He pushed me against a wall and after what happened to Marissa..."

Audra tightened her hold on the girl and felt something for her that she hadn't felt in a long time, a small need to protect.

This girl was dangerous, she had been affecting Audra in a very discreet way, her influence was making her go soft.

"You didn't know what he would do, if the alternative was similar to Marissa's fate then I'm glad you killed him." Abigail gave a small laugh. 

"Hannibal said the same."

"We Lecters think alike." Audra let go of the girl and gave a step back, Abigail needed to feel like she was not alone, needed someone who truly understood her. She could be that person, she only needed to show more of herself. 

"Let me show you something." Audra lifted the right side of her shirt just up until her ribs, there was a scar there that continued towards her thigh. Abigail's eyes got a bit wide. 

Understandable, it wasn't a pretty sight. 

"Do you remember my uncle? The one that stayed with me?" At the girl's nod she continued. "He made this happen... If I'd been brave like you were, I wouldn't have suffered this." She put her shirt down and put one hand on Abigail's right shoulder.

"This would have been an alternative. You are alive Abigail, be thankful that the alternative is still only that." 

She was openly crying now and closed the distance between them again, Audra had expected that and promptly returned the gesture. 

"You're not alone in this, I won't let you be." 

"Thank you Audra."

There were two things on her mind now. The first was that the girl was won, Abigail trusted her and was already relying on her with one of her darkest secrets, dependency would be only a matter of time now. The second was quite preocupying.

The sense of protection and responsability that Audra felt some time ago was stronger now, it seemed like she was just as affected by Abigail as she was by her, that was not expected and needed to be dealt with with caution. As her father said, there was no room for mistakes now.

"Come, it's already afternoon and I told father I would be home for lunch."

They walked back to the psychiatric facility together, they were getting closer to the facility's wall when they heard. 

"Miss Lecter?"

In surprise both girls turned. 

There was Tobias Budge, his hands were inside the pockets of his coat while he looked at them.

Audra was in full alert. The man had shown an obvious interest in her and her father, perhaps because of the possibility of understanding they could provide or maybe he just saw them as his next victims, her father had warned her after they returned from the opera not to underestimate this man in any way. 

She wasn't planning on it.

"Oh, Tobias was it?"

The man got closer hand already extended, Audra took a step forward and stood in front of Abigail to shake the man's hand. 

"And how is your father?" 

"He's well, busy of course."

"I can only imagine, I saw him outside of town a few nights ago, very busy indeed."

Audra's stomach gave a flip at that , she knew exactly which night he was talking about and what kept her father out. 

He had seen him kill.

"Audra?" 

That was Abigail, the girl was standing behind her with a strange expression on her face.

"And who are you?" He asked the other girl, before she could've answered Audra spoke. 

"A friend, she was just waiting for father with me."

"Oh? He is coming here then?" Budge's interest seemed to rise at that. "I could stay and wait for him with you." With a smirk he continued, obviously noticing the lie.

"Your friend is welcome to stay of course, there would be no trouble in that."

An obvious threat if Audra had ever heard one. 

She began to calculate her options, if Abigail died her father and her would lose Will or at least a great part of him, everything would be more difficult then needed, besides she liked her so the girl had to be protected. If Audra died her father would end up killing Budge, he would be careful so exposure was not a problem, he was strong so he would manage to go on without her.

He could even use her death as a way to get to Will.

The choice was obvious to her.

"Abigail, I'll stay here with Mr. Budge."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, he is a friend, there is nothing to worry about, besides Freddie Lounds was at the facility trying to speak with you." She got closer to the girl and hugged her. "Remember what we talked about ok?"

"Yeah, see you later." And with that she was gone.

There was a small silence, then Audra spoke.

"This place is far too open for what I believe you have in mind Mr. Budge."

He gave a small chuckle and spoke. 

"I had suspected that you were involved but it's good to have it confirmed."

"So, what now?" The mask had fallen completely, two predators staring at each other, cautious and ready to attack at any moment.

"Now you will come with me."

"I'm not going anywhere with you." She said that already circling him. The girl had no idea if there was anyone out there to see what was going on and at the moment it didn't matter, Budge took something from his pocket and unfolded it, it looked like a string from a cello.

Audra remembered the recent murder involving a symphony and made the connection.

It was so cliche it hurt.

He began spinning it quickly and she was on guard, paying attention to every move he made. 

"It would be easier if you would just come with me."

"Yes it would."

He stepped forward and attacked with his string, twirling it around so fast that a small noise could be heard, Audra was just diverting his attacks, there was no chance for her to fight back without getting closer, but that would risk her being hit by the thing. The only noticeable advantage she had right now was that she was faster then him. But he was taller and had longer legs.

With one long stride he got closer to her and twirled the string again on her neck's height, without having where to go she did the only thing she could and threw her feet forward, removing their support and falling on her back, the impact made her head hit the ground and a gasp escape her mouth. The next thing she knew the man was fully sitting on top of her with his hands around her neck.

Seriously was no one on this fucking street?!

He was choking her, before the dizziness spread she took hold of his right arm and blocked it, at the same time she used her left leg to block his right one, pushing her legs and hips up she flipped him diagonally and now stood on top of him in the middle of his legs, this gave her the advantage she needed and as soon as she found herself in that position she began hitting his face with the elbow of the arm still holding his own, she was ready to get herself up and hit his throat, but even if she had the techniques she was still smaller and he used that against her.

He took hold of her hair with his other hand and pulled, as he was stronger and she was already dizzy from hitting her head on the ground, it worked and she looked right into his eyes before he turned her again and hit her head harder still on the ground.

Everything went black. 

The next thing she knew she was on his arms being carried bridal style, she tried to fight but found she couldn't, everything was spinning and her vision wasn't focused on anything, he gave her something it had to be. The small movements she gave made him aware that she was awake, the girl noticed that he was in a foul mood, probably not expecting her to put up a fight like she did. 

"I suggest you do nothing or I will throw you at the trunk of my car."

At the mere mention of it she panicked, her breath became heavy and her eyes wide, desperately she tried to get away but couldn't, surprised he focused his vision on her, a slowly growing smirk appeared on his lips. 

Oh great, just what she needed, he noticed her fear.

"I see, well I'm sure there won't be a problem." 

When they got to the car he opened the trunk and threw her inside. She couldn't even scream because of what he gave her, the claustrophobic feeling was getting hold of her just as her panic, both being her only companions until the point where he parked the car and took her inside the basement of a building, there he tied her down on a table and still in silence, left.

She was tired so the girl just slept.

After a few hours she heard something that made hope blossom on her heart. Her father's voice was coming from upstairs, he was talking with Tobias, basically playing a game with him, asking about the murder at the symphony. She could hear him speak about his harpsichord needing to be fixed and asking for Tobias' help.

She tried to scream and call his name but found she couldn't, for some reason her voice wouldn't come out, so the girl tried to move herself to make some noise, but again, no sucess. She kept trying up until the moment Tobias appeared in front of her, an angry expression on his face, he said nothing, just grabbed a small knife he had and stabbed her leg. After that he just turned around and left. 

The place kept on filled with silence.

**-**

**PRESENT**

**-**

Audra had no idea for how long she stayed here, she was hungry and thirsty and tired, there was a stinging feeling on her left leg and the dizziness was still there, only weaker. 

Faintly she heard the music coming from outside, one of Budge's students based on the lack of skill. When it was over she heard a lovely familiar voice. 

Will.

But she was tired and almost blacking out again, she knew he had noticed Tobias' darkness at the opera, her father had said so, so he wouldn't give up on her. He couldn't.

After a while she heard the distinguished noise of bodies falling on the ground.

_No, no, no, no, no, no..._

She heard a noise and turned her head slowly to the right, she could only see Budge's silhouette coming down to the basement because of the white protection she had in front of her, he ignored her and quickly hid himself behind one of the walls. Soon after him someone else came. 

The white protection was briskly taken aside and she heard a shocked gasp above her.

"Audra..."

Feeling a lonely tear fall from her right eye she looked up and used all of her strength to speak, her voice was rough, weak and low.

"Will..." 

Then she saw Tobias coming from behind him, with a few strings on his hands, she still couldn't speak, saying Will's name had been an imense effort already, so she widened her eyes and focused them on Budge, luckily Will got it and raised his hands in time to stop the attack from being fatal. 

Raising his gun towards the other man, Graham pulled the trigger and the darker man faltered, when the empath got away he pointed the gun again and shoot, making the other run away. As soon as Will was certain that Tobias escaped he quickly pulled his phone and called an ambulance, he finished his call and untied her from the table, putting one of his hand on her head and caressing it saying that everything would be ok.

She smiled and allowed sleep to come.

She had been saved.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So yey that happened, the timeline in this works like this, Audra was captured by Tobias in the morning, she then was taken and stayed at his shop, remember the episode scene when Hannibal went there to invite him for dinner? She was already there. While Tobias had dinner with Hannibal she was still there at the shop, the present time on this fic is a day after the dinner when Will arrives telling Hannibal about his and Alana's kiss. So she stayed there for two days.
> 
> Here is a video that I used as reference for the fight, you can watch the whole explanation about the move, but the move itself that she used is at 2:50.
> 
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jl6banjihYM


	15. O Resgate

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Audra's rescue, hospital visits, singing and deaths happen and choices are being made.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is Will and Hannibal's points of view regarding Audra's rescue. There is a song that Hannibal sings in this chapter (don't worry this will make sense later) here is the link:  
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dqn_ETaQX08
> 
> As this is in Lithuanian here is a link with the translation:  
> http://www.mamalisa.com/?t=es&p=3988&c=286
> 
> TRANSLATION:   
> Tėvas = Father.
> 
> I really hope you guys like it. Good reading!  
> I own nothing.

Hannibal's anger could barely be contained. 

Audra had not been found yet and he was extremely worried, people could think what they wanted about him if they knew what he truly was, but he loved his daughter. Even if he had not wanted her when she was born she was a part of him, his first experiment, the only certainty he had that everything he was and did would go on even after his death. 

She was his everything and she was taken from him.

That night when Budge had come to his house Hannibal had noticed that the man had bruises all over his face and neck, when he spoke about it Tobias laughed and said in a humorous tone.

"Sometimes they fight back Doctor Lecter."

And he had laughed. 

Now he knew that he laughed at his own daughter's attempt of safety, she was the one that fought back, left her mark on the man and he laughed and had dinner with him.

If he had known about the truth, Tobias would be suffering at his basement right now. 

He had to keep calm, after Will called Jack the man came quickly with a small team of officers and a woman that later he learned was called Beverly Katz. She was there to collect samples of DNA just in case they only found blood or worse.

It was difficult for Hannibal to keep himself together, the role of worried father was not an easy one to play when all he wanted was to tear everyone around him apart. He sat down on his chair and closed his eyes, his left hand was covering his mouth and his breathing came in heavy puffs through his nose, he was so lost inside his own mind that when he felt a hand on his right shoulder he jumped a bit and looked up. 

Will was there with a worried expression on his face, he kneeled in front of the doctor and took his hand in his own, with a heavy tone he spoke.

"We will find her."

He couldn't stand this facade anymore, focusing on the empath's eyes Lecter allowed his mask to fall just enough so the other man could see his real intentions, then he spoke.

"Tobias Budge is mine."

Will's expression got cold as well as his voice when he spoke.

"Ours."

Hannibal gave the empath a genuine smile at that. After some time the agents left, the search would continue on the next day.

#

They reconstructed Audra's steps.

Jack went to speak with Abigail at the psychiatrical facility and Will was suppose to search the area around it, as soon as they got to the place he got close to Beverly and spoke.

"We both know she's not here."

"No, you know, I can only trust you." Will turned to her at this and saw her give him a small nod.

"Go Will, I'll cover for you." He smiled and put one hand on her shoulder. 

"Thanks Bev."

"Yeah I'm awesome, now go."

"Call me if you have any news." He got inside his car and drove to the city.

Before they came to the psychiatric facility Jack had already located the place where Budge worked just in case so that's where he was headed. On the way he received a call from Beverly. 

"What have you got?"

"We found blood near the northern wall of the facility." 

Will tried his best not to slam his hand on the wheel. 

"What else?"

"Abigail confirmed it was Budge, she said he came out of nowhere, spoke to them and volunteered to stay, she told us Audra said he was a friend and stayed behind with him."

His anger was continuously growing, the girl had trusted Tobias, he should've said something to her after the opera, warned her somehow...

"Will? Are you there?"

"Yeah, is that all?"

"Yes, Jack is sending a small team after him so if you wait a few minutes you may arrive at the same time."

Yeah he was not doing that. 

"Ok, thanks Bev."

"Good luck Will." He ended the call. 

When he got at the shop the team Jack sent was not there yet so Will took his gun in his hand and approached the door, getting inside he noticed Tobias was not alone. 

There was a small boy there, probably a student, when the man looked at the empath a slightly puzzled expression came onto his face, he probably didn't know that Will worked for the FBI. Because of the child the agent put his gun behind his back. 

"Tobias Budge?"

"Yes, I remember you, from the opera. Mr...?"

"Graham."

"Oh yes, Doctor Lecter's friend. One moment, I was just showing my student out." He had one of his hands on the boy's shoulder and instructed him about something as he walked, as soon as the boy was gone Will took hold of the man's shirt and pulled, at the same time disrupting his balance and making him fall on his back on the floor.

Quickly pulling out his gun and pointing it to Budge's head, the empath spoke with as much venom as he could.

"Where is she?"

Tobias had a murderous expression on his face as he stared at him but kept quiet. Will was about to pull the trigger when he heard a small whine, when he looked up he saw the last thing he expected.

There was the white stag walking inside one of the rooms. Budge used his brief distraction to get something that was close to him and stab Will's leg, the empath fell with a grunt and Tobias ran towards the same room he had seen the stag walk into. 

Panting a bit, Will got up and followed. 

He found stairs that led to a basement. 

Fucking figures.

Cautiously he went down the stairs and was met with darkness, some gut drowned in chemicals could be seen as well as a big white protection, slowly he got close to it and briskly pulled it aside. He was not ready for the sight that awaited him. 

There lying down, only in her underwear was Audra. 

Her skin was sickly pale, there were bruises around her neck as well as on her face, her hair was dirty and messy with dried blood in it, she was breathing with difficulty he noticed. When his eyes traveled down he saw her left leg had been stabbed, there was some dry blood around the wound as well as a small pool of it on the table, he could see an infection forming there. She also had syringe marks on her arms, Budge probably drugged her like that. 

One curious thing was the markings on her abdomen, small black lines that went from her right hip to her left one... Tobias was planning on opening her. 

"Audra..."

She blinked faintly and he saw a single tear fall from her eye, she turned her head slowly and spoke in an almost inaudible tone. 

"Will..."

He couldn't describe what he was feeling at the moment, he wanted to cry, to scream, to laugh, everything at the same time, but all that died when he saw her eyes widening and looking behind him. Will only had enough time to put his hands up before Tobias came with some strings trying to kill him, with great difficulty he managed to point the gun at him and shoot. 

He heard nothing after that because of the shot's noise, he only turned and continued to shoot at the other man until he was gone, after a few moments the empath grabbed his phone and called an ambulance, after he ended the call he got close to the girl and untied her hands, whispering that she would be ok. 

She passed out.

Feeling completely impotent Will only could feel her pulse while waiting for help.

"WILL?!"

Jack and his team arrived. 

"Over here!" Will said loudly, soon followed by a heavy sigh of relief.

They made it.

#

"I came to say goodbye, Franklyn."

Hannibal got up from his chair, eyes focusing on Budge, he hadn't seen the man since the dinner they had, the bruises were fading already but were still there. 

The only news was that his right ear was bleeding. 

"Oh, my God, is that your blood?"

"I just killed a man."

Hannibal's interest perked up at that, Tobias' eyes were now fixed on him when he spoke next.

"I'm afraid Doctor Lecter's list of friends just got smaller." 

His mind became blank.

Will.

Will was dead. 

If that was true then Audra...

The next thing he knew his hands were at Franklyn's neck twisting it violently and killing him.

"I was looking forward to that." Tobias said.

Hannibal didn't speak he just waited, even if he was now a man with nothing to lose it wasn't time to be reckless and irresponsible, Tobias got hold of a string of a cello and began spinning it, after his first advance hell broke loose.

Hannibal knew he couldn't underestimate this man and he wouldn't, but he needed to take a few punches. 

After all, how would he call it self defense later?

When the darker man stabbed his leg he decided if was time to stop this little foreplay, positioning himself in front of his stair he waited until Budge threw his next punch, quickly getting out of his way, Hannibal managed to trap and break the man's arm. He was delighted at the scream he let out. 

He continued to attack tough.

Easily diverting his attacks the doctor was able to give him a punch on his throat, making the man fall on his knees. 

A sudden image of Audra came into his mind, still small looking up at him with those big eyes and saying her first word.

_Tėvas._

He took hold of Tobias' broken arm and twisted it in a way that made bone break skin.

_Tėvas._

He looked at the compound fracture with a calm expression and took hold of the bone, Budge couldn't even scream as he pulled and twisted.

_Father._

He let go of Tobias and approached his stag statue, taking care not to leave any prints on it Hannibal gave one single blow against the man's head, ending his life. He dropped it and overthrew its support.

He almost forgot himself back there, he had to remember that in theory this had been self defense.

Tired he sat down on his chair and called Jack. After the call was made he indulged himself and played one of his favourite songs on his harpsichord.

#

The forensics team arrived first. 

It was all a blur in front of Hannibal's eyes, faintly he remembered someone trying to tend to his wounds and trying to ask him a few questions, but he wouldn't move or speak, he just looked at the ground with a stoic face. 

He heard someone arriving and looked at the door, there was Jack coming inside the room with a grim expression on his face, what Hannibal didn't expect was to see Will walking behind the man. 

He inhaled and exhaled heavily, tears were forming on his eyes as he stared at the man coming closer to him, his eyes were fixed on Hannibal as if looking at anything else would make him disappear, the doctor could tell he was holding back and grew curious at what the empath would do if they were alone. 

But that was a conversation for another time.

"I was worried you were dead."

"So was I when I heard what happened." The man got closer and stayed eye level with Hannibal, he put one of his hands on Lecter's neck, letting his fingers grace his hair lightly and his thumb caress discreetly his jaw. 

"Hannibal we found her, she's alive at the hospital right now."

What little air he had left in his lungs abandoned him at that moment. He could just look at Will's eyes trying to find any trace of a lie there and when he found none he felt the tears finally fall across his face. He closed his eyes and let his head fall forward, his forehead was now touching Will's, the empath's smell was so close he could smell Audra faintly on him, that made a small smile appear on his lips.

An insistent cough was heard and both men separated. 

Jack was watching them with a slight smirk on his face.

Hannibal's almost forgotten that they were not alone.

"Well, as Will said we found your daughter, but I need you to explain me what exactly happened here."

And so Lecter spoke, about how Tobias had invaded his office, killed his patient and attacked him, Will even helped telling Crawford about Budge's intense interest at the Lecters while they were all at the opera and about how that moment could have been the moment the man chose to kill them both.

After they told their story Jack went to speak to the forensic team, leaving them alone again.

"I feel like I've dragged you into my world." Said Will.

"I got here on my own. But I appreciate the company."

The empath smiled gently at him.

"So do I."

#

Hannibal was sitting beside Audra's bed in a chair looking attentively at her.

He could see the damage done to her, the angry feeling he had about this whole situation still hadn't left and he knew she would need some time to recover after what had been done to her. Now that things were solved he could finally sit back and think clearly for the first time in days. 

Jack had told Hannibal about how Budge managed to get to Audra, based on his version Lecter was able to recreate the real scenary. Tobias had appeared and Audra was with Abigail, his daughter thought it would be better to protect Abigail then herself, he knew she had Will in mind when she thought about this. 

She had clearly underestimated how deeply the empath felt for her.

This whole situation had been positive in a way: Hannibal could see Will getting closer and closer to the choice they'd set for him.

But now was not time for this, getting closer to the girl the doctor took hold of her hand and did something he hadn't done since she was a small girl. 

He sang to her a lullaby.

Emotional moments like this were to be expected, he was a father after all. 

He was almost glad that he was alone.

#

Will had come to the hospital to visit Audra, he brought Abigail with him since the girl was drowning in guilt about what happened, she brought flowers with her. They walked through the corridors and when they got closer to her room they heard something peculiar.

It was Hannibal's voice.

Hannibal's voice **singing**.

_Čiūčia liūlia dukrytėla, mano mylimoji_

Will made Abigail stop walking lest they interrupted the doctor and just listened.

_Kiek jau kartų per dienelį, tavį pakilojau_

_Pakilojau panešiojau, patalėlį klojau_

_Čiūčia liūlia dukrytėla, mano mylimoji_

It was a lullaby he noticed, slowly as to not startle the man he got inside the room, Abigail followed suit. There was Hannibal sitting beside the bed holding Audra's right hand, his back to them.

_Auk didutė būk greitutė, mano dukrytėla_

_Čiūčia liūlia dukrytėla, mano mylimoji_

Abigail got closer when he finished and put one hand on his back.

"That was beautiful."

Lecter gave a small chuckle and said. "I see that I was caught in the act." After Abigail set the flowers in a vase she sat at the end of the bed. Will looked at the three of them and wondered when had they been able to crawl inside his heart to fast. 

He got closer to the doctor and stood at his right side, he put his left hand on Lecter's left shoulder, slowly carressing his way to the man's neck and back to his shoulder. 

He knew now that this is where he belonged, besides Hannibal, Audra and Abigail. 

He had made his choice.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Will made his choice! From now on Dark!Will will be a thing as his and Hannibal's relationship delevops, Audra will stay at the hospital for a while so those two will be my focus now. I really hope you guys are enjoying this story, remember if there's anything at all that you think I should change or not tell me, ideas and critics are amazing.  
> Thanks for reading!
> 
> There is a song that Hannibal sings in this chapter here is the link:  
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dqn_ETaQX08
> 
> As this is in Lithuanian here is a link with the translation:  
> http://www.mamalisa.com/?t=es&p=3988&c=286
> 
> TRANSLATION:   
> Tėvas = Father.


	16. Luxúria

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Will and Hannibal have some special time together.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok, first of all I wanted to thank you all for the kudos and comments, they are all amazing and it really helps to know that people are enjoying this fic, so, thanks!  
> Also, it's been a long time I know and I'm sorry about that, I've been having no inspiration at all and I didn't want to write something bad. This chapter compared to the last few I wrote is a bit smaller. BUT FEAR NOT! This is an introdutory chapter, the arc of Will's darkness and the exploring of his disease will start now, already here he demonstrates a bit of his dark side so... Yeah.  
> Thank you so much for reading, I hope you all like it!
> 
> Disclaimer: I own nothing.

"You seemed quite agreeable with the idea of killing Tobias Budge."

Will stared at Hannibal, it was late afternoon and they were both at the doctor's home sitting in front of a fireplace. The empath went there with the other man after their third visit to Audra at the hospital, it's been only a couple of days since the kidnapping occured, but they went there regularly.

She was not awake yet.

"Well, you seemed quite agreeable with it as well if my memory doesn't fail me."

"You don't deny it."

"Do you?"

"Of course not, Tobias kidnapped, beat, drugged and planned to kill my daughter. Any father would feel this way, I'm curious about what made your reaction become almost as intense as mine."

The strength of the question made Will fall back on his chair and exhale. It was so strange to have his feelings put in perspective like that, he already had Audra as a daughter in his head, much like Abigail and Hannibal noticing it made him feel odd. He knew now how far he would go for her, and maybe even for the man himself. 

His and Lecter's relationship was a strange thing at the moment, he could tell that both of them were testing the waters, dancing around each other with easy smiles and gentle eyes, only it never went further then that. Perhaps the doctor still had doubts regarding Will's intentions towards Alana, which would make sense now that he thought about it. 

Honestly? He'd almost forgotten about the woman since the kidnapping occured and...

"Will?"

Oh.

Hannibal was waiting for an answer.

"Audra is important to me, I'd say I have a strong bond with her."

"As strong as your bond with Abigail?"

The empath only gave him a nod and looked down, until things between them were normal again he felt like he had no right to feel like that about Hannibal's daughter. He felt like an intruder. After a few seconds he spoke again, voice low.

"I almost did it you know."

From the corner of his eyes he could see Hannibal inclining his body forward and supporting his elbows on his knees, with an interested tone of voice he said.

"Tell me."

"He was on the floor staring at me, he wouldn't say where Audra was and I had my gun on his head... There was a moment where I almost pulled the trigger."

"What stopped you?"

"I saw... Well I got distracted and Tobias used it to run off."

"If this distraction hadn't occured...?"

Will just looked at Hannibal at that, the flames created a small performance on the doctor's face, flashes of yellow light dancing around his sharp features and maroon eyes. 

"You know the answer to that question."

"And how do you feel about that?"

"Knowing what he did to you and Audra I'm sorry I didn't kill him on that moment."

Hannibal had a strange expression on his face now, like he was trying to conceal his excitement but still a bit wary, when he spoke next his voice came out cautious.

"Would you accept the act of killing so easily because of Audra?"

Will couldn't stop himself from inclining his body forward and looking into the fire avoiding the doctor's eyes, when he spoke the next words it was like he discovered something new about himself.

"For both of you, yes."

Now he was scared. 

Was he already that deep that killing became plausible? Sure he thought about protecting people who were important to him but... At the cost of a life? And he wasn't bothered by it, he couldn't say he felt the same with Tobias as with Hobbs, he'd wanted to kill Budge, was hoping for it. When the man wouldn't answer where the girl was he was almost glad for the excuse to wound and kill. He wanted to see that pig suffer for what he had done to his...

"William."

He shook his head a bit and looked forward.

When had Hannibal got there? 

The doctor was kneeling in front of him, his hands were around Will's and he looked attentively at his eyes. There was wonder in Lecter's face and he smiled in that minimalistic way he usually did, his voice when he spoke next was gentle, so different from a few moments before.

"Thank you."

As Will looked at Lecter's gentle face, his frustration got to him and he finally asked. 

"Hannibal?"

"Yes?"

"What are we? To each other that is."

The man looked back at him with a considering expression on his face, his head turned slightly to the side and Will noticed, with pleasure, that he hadn't let go of his hands yet.

"We are nothing but two people, whose destinies crossed by mere chance, who saw potential in each other to become so much more and who realized that only together we can achieve that much."

Will freed one of his hands and took it towards Hannibal's face, fingertips caressing his jaw slowly. 

"What kind of potential do you see in me?" He murmured.

There was something in Lecter's eyes now, a sudden darkness that made Will's heart skip a beat, his mask was falling slowly and the agent's empathy, usually so dorment with the doctor, went into action and like a sponge he absorved everything he could.

There was a desire so intense being reflected at him that he gasped, he could tell the other man was in control of what he could see, the doctor was selecting carefuly what he showed and what the empath saw made shivers run down his skin. Hannibal wanted to own him, to tear him apart and put him back together, to crawl inside his skin and stay there. The doctor's voice when he spoke was almost a purr.

"The potential to stand by my side as an equal."

Will was not particularly proud of the way he almost attacked the doctor when he kissed him, putting his hands briskly on his hair, grabbing at it with strength while opening his legs to pull him closer, Hannibal's hands were now on his hips, slowly making its way up and enveloping him in a tender embrace, his tongue now teasing the empath's lips asking for entrance, which was promptly given. Will noticed that Lecter was containing himself, each movement even if intense seemed calculated and he could not have that. 

With a final bite on Hannibal's lower lip Will stopped the kiss, the sudden movement made the other man give him a small noise of protest and search for his mouth again, to which the empath avoided. Using his hand on Lecter's hair he pulled gently putting him in a position that they looked directly into each other's eyes. 

"You want to own me." The rough tone of his voice and its finality made Hannibal blink as if regaining control of himself, Will got close and bit at the other man's lower lip again.

"You want to mark me permanently as yours." Now the bite he gave was at Lecter's jaw, he noticed with satisfaction that his little manipulation was getting him results, the doctor's hold of him was now tight, his fingers were digging on his hips trying to get him closer. His breathing was also heavier, but still not heavy enough. 

Will put both his hands now on Hannibal's chest, slowly pushing him back and making him sit down with his back supported by the other chair, he didn't let the doctor have much time to comprehend what was going on before he just sat on his lap straddling him. Lecter's hands went straight to his hips and with a strained voice he spoke.

"Will..."

"Such controled movements won't get you what you want Hannibal..." Those words were quickly accompanied with a slow roll of his hips and a quick kiss to the other man's lips, both actions made a small sound leave Lecter's throat.

Success. 

"If you are not going to take what is yours, should I take what is mine then?" 

Those words seemed to make something in Hannibal snap, his hungry eyes focused on Will and, still holding him, the doctor pushed his body forward making Will lie on his back, with both his elbows resting besides the empath's face Lecter finally kissed him with no restraint.

And it was glorious. 

Even if the kiss was still a slow and sensual torture there was a savage characteristic on it, he bit when he could and licked his way into Will's mouth easily, his right hand was now caressing Will's side, getting inside his shirt while making its way up and scratching its way down again. The empath gave a hiss at that and lifted his head, exposing his neck to Hannibal, who promptly went down on it. 

Lecter bit the junction between jaw and neck and sucked hard on it, at the same time to which he pulled his hips down on the empath's.

And Will? 

He was trying to keep up, every feeling was almost to much, too intense. But that was what he wanted wasn't it? He could feel himself getting harder and harder, it got worse every time a little growl was heard coming from Hannibal. It was only when their hips met that he noticed he wasn't the only one affected by all this, the doctor was as hard as him. He couldn't help but give a small growl of his own, snuggling his fingers on Hannibal's hair and scratching gently.

They were tangled on the ground, Hannibal on top of Will, his right hand getting closer and closer to the zipper of the empath's pants while their hips met in a devious rhythm, getting gasps and moans out of both of them.

After a particularly hard suck on Will's neck and a trembled exhaled breath something absolutely ridiculous happened. 

Will's phone was ringing. 

_Are you fucking kidding me._

Hannibal's rhythm stopped a bit and with a heavy breath they both stared at each other, Will felt like it was the first time he had ever seen Hannibal without so many layers of his mask on, he looked raw, mouth slightly open and hair disheveled. Will closed his eyes and pulled Hannibal closer again, putting his head on the junction of his neck and shoulder, pushing his hips up slightly he whispered on the other man's ear. 

"Just a bit longer..." He kept saying that for a while longer while Lecter resumed his movements, kisses and suckings only slower, in a more gentle and lazy way. But the phone's ringing got to them after a while and Hannibal spoke for the first time in a long while.

"I think... You should get it." His voice was so deep and rough that it was an almost physical torture to separate from him. 

"Hello?" 

"Will, we have a totem of bodies, I need you on this."

Now he was on full alert.

"Did you just say a totem of bodies?" 

"Yes on a beach, I need you here as fast as you can got it?"

"Got it." With that he ended the call, after a heavy sigh he looked at Hannibal, he was back to his usual self, the good doctor back in place. He was sitting down, his breath was already returning to normal and he had a completely besotted expression on his face.

"Duty calls..."

"Indeed..."

They both seemed lost as to how to proceed, suddenly Hannibal gave a small chuckle and approached. He touched Will's forehead with his own and, with a very relaxed smile and closed eyes, said.

"Be careful out there."

"Of course..." Will got up along with Hannibal and both men straightened themselves. After a lazy kiss on the doorstep the empath finally left. 

It was while he was driving that what happened finally caught up with him. He had never been so forward with anyone like that before, usually he was more caring and (he liked to think) smoother, today he'd been the complete opposite! 

Something must have triggered it and... 

Eyes already widening he looked at one of the car's mirrors and saw a great amount of marks on his neck.

Shit.

#

Hannibal was extremely surprised.

This was not how he had imagined his day to end. 

Will had gone away a few moments ago and he used such time to think. 

He had shown Will probably too much about himself, it was a risk of course but something extraordinary had been discovered and he would most definitely use it. 

When the empath became suddenly bold and manipulative Hannibal got surprised at first for such things were extremely familiar to him, for a moment he dreaded to think about the reasons why that might have happened but then everything made sense. This night had been the first night he had shown so much of himself to the empath and, as expected, Will's empathy allowed the man to understand Hannibal's desires and a small sample of darkness. 

Only that wasn't the only thing that happened.

Will hadn't just seen him and understood him, he'd fully projected him. 

Like a sponge he had absorved some of Hannibal's darkness and desire and like a mirror reflected back already molded to Will's own self but still, it was Hannibal's presence that clouded the empath's mind during their intimate moment. That thought alone got shivers traveling on his back.

The fact that Will had wanted to kill Budge had also been a victory, if not the most important. 

Remembering what the man had said about the distraction that had made Tobias' escape possible he could only assume it was a hallucination, he would have to keep an eye on him to see to what point he could use that detail on his favour, after that he had to deal with Will's encephalitis, on each passing day the smell grew stronger and Hannibal had to keep it in control. 

Unfortunately at the moment, he was having trouble remembering his own name, Will's touch could still be felt on his skin alongside his smell, he'd been so different, so sure of himself and of his power, completely intoxicating...

He needed a distraction.

Sad that Audra was still at the hospital, he could really use a conversation now.

With a sigh he climbed up the stairs towards his room and played the theremin.

Or at least tried to. 

His hands were still trembling a bit.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Soooo? This is really the first time I've ever written something like this and even if I'm a bit embarassed it was fun to do it, so I think spicy times like these will occur again in the future, I may even change the Rating, but I'm still thinking about it.  
> Anyways, what did you guys think? Remember that ideas, critics and questions are always welcome. Thanks so much for reading!


	17. Descobertas

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Audra wakes up, some fluff and Nicholas Boyle comes back to say hi.  
> Hannibal is not amused.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey! Now I really have no excuse for taking this long in writing this chapter other then I had the most terrible block in history, no inspiration at all, kept watching Hannibal and listening to some music to see if it would kick in, but nope. Only now I'm happy with what I came up with, I know I said Will would get darker, but know that it's still subtle, later on he will be doing darker stuff.  
> I hope you guys like it, good reading!
> 
> Disclaimer: I own nothing.
> 
> Remember: Tėvas means father.

"Father?"

Will got closer to the bed when he heard her small voice, Audra's eyes were half open and she was still a bit disoriented, but he couldn't begin to describe the feeling of relief that washed over him at the moment. Already close and with his left hand caressing her hair the empath spoke with a gentle tone.

"Hey, how are you feeling?"

"I've been better... What happened?"

"You... Don't remember?" Will's tone got softer at that, the damage on her head must be serious then, he wondered what else the girl wasn't able to remember.

"I remember Abigail, we were together and then a man arrived..." She was frowning and suddenly gasped, taking her right hand toward her forehead, in an instant Will got closer and pressed the button calling for a nurse. 

"Don't strain yourself, you've been through a lot and need rest. You can try to remember everything later."

With a small sigh the girl reacomodated herself on her bed, there was a soft smile on her lips when she spoke next.

"I knew you would be good for us..."

Will was the one frowning now. "What do you mean?"

"You are what was missing, with you I feel like our family is complete again."

There was something wrong here, Will couldn't quite put his finger on it but... Something was out of place. He got up from the chair he was sitting and sat on the bed, he leaned towards her and put his hand on her hair again, she closed her eyes and smiled when he did that. With an uncertain voice he spoke.

"Audra... Tell me the story of how your father ruined your dress with wine when you were small. Do you remember that?"

She was quiet.

"Audra?"

There was something on his hand, frown deepening he took it away from her head and looked at it, his heart began beating faster and his breathing became heavy.

There was blood on his hand.

As he turned to scream for a nurse to come the girl grabbed his wrist gently making him turn back to her with a worried expression on his face.

"It's ok Will, there is nothing to worry about." As she spoke that he could only watch in horror as blood began to stream down her face, it was coming from the top of her head in great quantity. 

Will was panicking already, he didn't know where to put his hands, if he could stop the bleeding or not and where the fuck was the nurse he called some time ago? 

"Wait here I'll get someone." But before he could even get up from the bed the girl got hold of his arms with surprising strength, she was still smiling as if there was no blood at all.

"Will..." Her hands went to his cheeks, holding his face gently as she spoke again in almost a whisper.

"See?"

That made him halt and whisper with a trembled voice. "What did you just say?"

She only smiled wider.

There was something coming out from her head, only now he saw. Pointy things, red because of the blood, it kept coming and he couldn't stop it, after a moment he could finally see what it was.

Antlers.

Will's breathing was as heavy and fast as when he tried to hold Abigail's bleeding throat after killing her father, his panic only grew until he felt a searing pain on his back, as he looked down he saw the points of antlers coming through his chest positioned just like on the girls Hobbs killed, he was being lifted slowly, Audra was still holding his hand, the girl was already completely covered by the blood. She smiled at him and, with a haunting voice, spoke one last time.

"See?"

That's when he woke up, screaming and sweating.

#

It was 3AM when Hannibal heard his phone ringing. 

As annoyed as he was by the disturbance of his sleep it all went away as soon as he saw the name on the screen.

"Will?"

"Hannibal..." 

Something was wrong, Hannibal could hear the shaking breaths the empath was giving, how his voice trembled when he said his name, instantly he was awake and sitting on his bed.

"What happened?" 

"Nothing, just... I think I'm not above calling you when I have a nightmare." Will managed to give a small chuckle after saying that. This simple act coming from someone like Will showed Hannibal just how much the young man trusted him. 

"Where are you?"

"Not in Baltimore, we are still looking into the totem case here." 

"I see... William, if I may ask, what was your dream about?"

There was silence on the other side of the line for a moment, then the agent spoke.

"It was Audra she... She'd just woken up at the hospital and I was there with her, everything was fine but then blood kept coming from her head and she was all covered in it and..." 

He was panicking, Hannibal couldn't have that right now. 

"Will, breathe with me for a moment, pay attention only to my breathing." After a moment the empath was calmer then before, the doctor waited a second before he spoke again.

"You are still shaken by what happened to her."

"Yes... It's just... We almost lost her Hannibal, there's no way I'm forgetting that so soon."

We.

Hannibal didn't even try to fight the smile that came onto his lips.

"Indeed, but we didn't lose her Will, she is alive and recovering. Soon she will be with us again, and I suspect Abigail won't leave her side after what happened." He heard the small chuckle coming from the other side of the line and relaxed a bit, Will was calmer already.

"Yeah... I will visit her as soon as I'm back, would you accompany me?"

"With pleasure."

Both men stayed silent for a moment after that, both not knowing what to say until the empath spoke with a small voice.

"I don't want to sleep."

It was as vulnerable as it could be, Hannibal couldn't say he was surprised, his Will was one of the most vulnerable people he knew, of course the man protected himself with forts and a peculiar false courage, but still. 

"I could help if you wish."

With an amused tone Will spoke again.

"Will you sing for me Doctor Lecter?"

Hannibal chuckled and rearranged himself on his bed.

"I'm afraid not, I can however induce you in a sleep state through hypnosis."

Silence.

"I don't think I need anyone else inside my head at the moment." He seemed to realize what he just said and hurried to speak again. "Nothing against you though, I trust you it's just..."

"Of course Will, it was just a thought." 

"I just need you to talk to me that's all." 

And he did, they spoke for almost an hour about many things, some were important some were not, sometimes Hannibal would use his knowledge to subtly implant some things in Will's mind.

Nothing major.

Only suggestions.

Never any of them mentioned what happened at Hannibal's home between them, it seemed unnecessary, they were confortable and bringing it up now made no sense, so Hannibal avoided the subject. They were again speaking about the dream now that Will had calmed down.

"She told me I was what was missing, that together we could be a family, that's how I knew something was wrong."

"Oh?"

"Audra wouldn't say that, even if she felt it. She's too much like you, discreet."

"I agree, but if that is the case maybe you should consider what your subcontious is trying to tell you about it. Do _you_ want a family Will?"

With an almost inaudible voice the empath spoke.

"I think I do."

"And do you think we can provide that for you?" His voice was as gentle as possible now and Hannibal couldn't say it was to manipulate anyone. 

For a long time now he noticed the impact Will Graham had over him, he made him careless and impulsive, made him feel too much. Will's darkness had always been a fascinating subject to Lecter but now that the man himself was becoming as important to him as his own life he had to be twice as careful when dealing with him. Now those words sounded like ash on Hannibal's ears, in this moment while he waited for an answer for such a strong question, Graham's potential became secondary. 

"I believe you already do."

All the possibilities came onto his mind like a hammer, the four of them would be together, Abigail and Audra would become inseparable, they would work together and would be implacable wether to lure people or to do anything else they wished. Him and Will would do the same, he would teach Will to appreaciate the fine art of culinary, they would hunt together and be mentors and fathers to Audra and Abigail. 

They would build a legacy. 

"Hannibal?"

Getting hold of himself he spoke, still with that gentle careless tone he became so prone of using while speaking with the empath.

"I'm glad you feel like that Will."

A soft exhale of air could be heard on the other side of the line.

"I... Thank you Hannibal, I think I'll be able to sleep now."

"The pleasure was mine, sleep well."

"You too."

They ended the call and Hannibal just sat there, a stubborn smile kept itself on his lips and he gave a sigh. As he went to sleep he dreamt about all that awaited their new family.

Things were good.

#

Will had returned from his trip a while ago, the forensics team was already analizing the bodies from the totem and trying to connect the dots. While they did that, him, Hannibal and Abigail went to visit Audra at the hospital. 

The three of them were talking with each other when they heard it.

"Tėvas..." 

Instantly Hannibal was beside the bed everything else forgotten, Will was there as well while Abigail called a nurse. Audra was looking at her father with a tired expression on her face, then she smiled a bit and spoke, voice still low.

"Hi."

"Audra." 

Will smiled as he watched them, Hannibal had his right hand on top of Audra's and his other hand was caressing her head gently, he heard Lecter say something to her in their mother language and then her head turned slowly to him.

"Will... Thank you." 

The smile on his face was instantaneous as he got closer, his hand went towards her head but a sudden image of the dream he had had came into his mind and he quickly redirected it to her shoulder, caressing it with his thumb.

"Audra..." 

That was Abigail, the girl approached the bed and Will gave her some space as she sat down beside Audra and grabbed her hand.

"I'm so sorry, I shouldn't have left you there alone. I was plain stupid and..."

"Abigail it's ok, don't worry I'm ok."

"Yes, yes... I won't repeat that mistake." Will got close to Abigail and gave her an one armed hug. 

"None of us will." 

The nurse arrived then and they had to step back as she checked on Audra. Will was incredibly amused as he watched the now badly concealed annoyance on her face, his amusement was perceived by Hannibal who gave a small smile of his own. 

"Yes." Was the only thing the man said which made Will's smile grow.

They stayed there for at least fifteen more minutes until Will's phone started ringing. 

It was Jack.

"Will, something came up."

"Any news on the totem?"

"No, it's Nicholas Boyle, they found him."

"Great, where is he?"

"They found his body Will, he's dead."

He stopped walking and just blinked.

"Dead?"

"Yes, I'll send someone to get Abigail so she can identify the body."

"But you already know who... You think she had something to do with it."

From the corner of his eyes he saw Hannibal perking up and looking at him.

"Yes Will I do, now..."

"Jack I'll call you back in a moment." He didn't give Jack the time to reply and just ended the call.

"Hannibal, a word."

As he walked outside he could hear the doctor following him, outside he just turned and spoke. 

"They found Nicholas Boyle, he is dead."

There was surprise on Hannibal's face. "And what does Jack have to say about that?"

"He wants Abigail to see the body, to identify him he said."

"He thinks she is involved."

"Yes... Hannibal she's not ready for this, we can't let her."

"We have no choice Will." The empath put one of his hands on Hannibal's shoulder and spoke.

"She is innocent Hannibal."

"Then let her prove it, perhaps she is stronger then we both know."

"Yeah... Well, I'll go say goodbye to the girls, Jack will want to speak with me before we get Abigail." He got inside the room and spoke with them, as he went outside he noticed Hannibal was still standing where he left him, with a troubled expression on his face, he got close to the man. 

"I'm going, Jack will probably call you so I'll see you in a bit." 

And on an impulse he leaned up and gave the doctor a small kiss. When he noticed what he'd done he just let his eyebrows go up and looked at Hannibal, who was smiling amused.

The bastard.

"Sorry about that."

"Nothing to apologize dear Will." As he said that, Hannibal gently got hold of his chin and kissed him, he lingered for a second but soon let go, looked into Will's eyes and gave him an amused smile.

"Drive safely." And got inside Audra's room again.

Will stood there dumbstruck for longer then he would like to admit until he felt his phone vibrating, he got the call.

"I'm on my way Jack."

#

"They found Nicholas Boyle."

That was the first thing Hannibal said when he got inside Audra's room, as soon as he said that Abigail let out a shaking breath and he saw Audra's eyes widening as she quickly got hold of the girls hand.

Ah yes, he'd almost forgotten about it, in theory Audra didn't know about his death, though what Abigail spoke next was a pleasant surprise.

"There's no need to lie, I told everything to Audra."

"How did they find him?" Asked Audra.

"That's what I want to know Abigail." The girl instantly got a guilty look on her but spoke in a defensive tone.

"You're right, I opened the door and I can't control what comes through it, but this time I could control when. I'm not afraid of them finding Nicholas Boyle anymore." She gave a small pause and spoke again.

"He's been found."

"You betrayed my trust. You jeopardized my life as well as your own, this without mentioning Audra who's already recovering from a trauma, she didn't have to go through this." 

The girl was frowning deeply now, he could see her hand clenching over Audra's, his daughter took the chance of the fact that Abigail was distracted and looked at him, it was weak, but he could see the worry there. 

She looked tired already. 

He got closer to her and put one of his hands on her head, taking a few curls out of her face.

"We deserve more than that, I need to trust you, Abigail. What if I can't?"

She got up, letting go of Audra's hand and got closer to him, the girl positioned herself at Hannibal's side giving him an one armed hug, supporting her head on his shoulder. 

"You can trust me... I won't put you guys in this situation again... I won't put _us_ in this situation again."

He had to give her that chance, too much depended on her for him to antagonize her now. 

Their moment was ended as soon as he felt his phone ringing.

Jack was calling.

He had little time to prepare Abigail to face Nicholas Boyle again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What did you guys think?! Really curious now, I am really inspired now so the next chapter will come sooner then this one did, I really hope you all liked it.  
> Remember that ideas, critics and stuff are appreciated.
> 
> Thank you so much for reading!


	18. Comprometimentos

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Abigail identifies Nicholas Boyle, Audra learns about her father's relationship with Will and dear Will learn a few things about Abigail and Hannibal.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HANNIBAL SEASON 3 TONIGHT OH MY GOD  
> Also, this fic has over 100 kudos and I'm dying because of it, this is amazing and I really wanted to thank everyone for it, you are all amazing.  
> I wanted to post this before the episode tonight, I'm sure everyone is dying right now because of the season premiere. Here are some of the sources I used for this chapter.  
> Psychological information: http://www.trauma-pages.com/s/t-facts.php  
> Untranslatable words: http://matadornetwork.com/abroad/20-awesomely-untranslatable-words-from-around-the-world/
> 
> I really hope you guys like this chapter, good reading and good luck to us all tonight! 
> 
> Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Nicholas Boyle's body appearance had been extremely convenient, almost to much if you asked for his opinion, the totem was an ongoing case and he had much to think about and yet he couldn't stop thinking about the Hobbs girl and her involvement in all this. The worst part for him was Will and Hannibal, especially Will. The man got too close, he wouldn't admit to it out loud, but he knew what happened around him and Will was starting to compromise himself, now he couldn't be sure that the man didn't actually know something and was in fact protecting Abigail.

He was doubting one of his best agents.

That couldn't be a good sign.

"Jack?"

With that he turned and looked at the woman at the door, Alana had a grim expression on her face, making her disapproval known to all who looked at her. 

"Yes?"

"Will called, said he's almost here." As she said that she was already positioning herself onto one of the chairs in his office, after a few moments of awkward staring Will appeared, he entered the room in an unusual silence, expression so empty that even Alana's eyebrows got up a bit, surprise clear on her face. 

"Making faces won't change the situation Will." 

He kept quiet, nothing but a nod came out of the man and Jack couldn't help the small shiver and wariness that came to him. 

God it's too early for this. 

"I've called Dr. Lecter, he'll be arriving soon, only then we will discuss what I have in mind."

"Oh we both know what you have in mind Jack and it's an absurd that you are even thinking about this possibility." Said the woman with a fiery look, he only gave a sigh and spoke as camly as possible.

"Wait for Dr. Lecter."

It would be a long day.

#

"I want to go on record as saying that this is a very bad idea. Hannibal?" 

"Jack has the look of a man with no interest in any opinion but his own." 

"I want you to observe on this, Alana."

"If you're putting Abigail in a room with the body, I want to be there." Said the empath for the first time since he got inside Jack's office.

"I'm sorry, Will. I am not very confident with your ability to be objective about Abigail Hobbs right now. Alana." 

And away they went, only a few seconds passed before Will turned to Hannibal and spoke exasperated.

"He could do Abigail irreparable damage exposing her to this."

"Have some faith in her Will."

"Faith?" Will's gaze became sharp as he got closer to the doctor. "We were suppose to protect her."

"And we will should she need us, but right now there is nothing we can do."

Will gave a heavy sigh and a nod, Hannibal was right.

All they could do now was wait.

#

"Miss Hobbs, I want you to look at this man." Jack almost theatrically took the cloth from the body, leaving no time whatsoever for the girl to prepare for the sight, she visibly flinched as she stared at the body. 

Alana still couldn't believe that this was actually happening. 

At the moment Abigail was demonstrating the usual signs of a traumatized person, shock, anxiety, hyper-alertness amongst others, physically the girl was completely guarded, arms close to her body as she stared at Nicholas' face, with a heavy breath she closed her eyes and tried to compose herself, when she opened them she stared at Jack and gave a small nod. 

"That's him."

She couldn't take this anymore, so she approached the girl and tried to get her out of the room, only to be stopped by Jack. 

What was he...

"I just have a few other questions I'd like you to answer. Have you seen this man since the night he attacked you?"

Alana watched Abigail as the girl gave the man a small frown, she was purposivelly avoiding the body as she answered, her tone was a bit confused but aside from that there was no sign that the girl was lying or trying to hide anything.

"No I haven't, why? Was he following me or something?" Now her eyes were a bit wide as she looked at Jack, her voice wavering a bit in fear.

"No, that's not the case. This man, Nicholas Boyle, was gutted with a hunting knife, you knew how to do that." Abigail's frown returned with full strength as the girl realized what Jack was implying. 

Alana was hardly containing herself at the moment.

"Jack, I won't be party to this."

"Then you can leave. You're here by invitation, by courtesy, Dr. Bloom. Please don't interrupt me again."

Sometimes Alana forgot that Jack was actually above her in rank.

"You think I did this." Abigail's tone was calm when she said this, not as a question, but as a resigned comment. 

"Where do you go when you escape from the hospital, Abigail?"

"Most of the time I went into the city, if not the city then the woods. I just needed to stay away for a while."

"And were you always alone?"

"Not always, sometimes I met Audra outside and she went with me."

Now even Alana stared at the girl with attention, she didn't look like she was lying, the fact that she so promptly exposed her only friend at the moment showed that the girl was trying to be as true as possible, else she would try to avoid mentioning Hannibal's daughter at all costs. 

Especially after what happened to her.

"Audra? As in Audra Lecter?" Jack's tone suggested that he was getting frustrated. 

Alana couldn't say that she was feeling sorry for him anyhow.

"Yes."

Jack spent the next five minutes asking if the girl knew or if she met Nicholas Boyle in any sort of situation both before and after the attack, the answer was always negative. 

What really impressed Alana was how the girl was with the body present, she was doing an excellent job at ignoring it, sometimes her eyes would go to Nicholas' face or to his now exposed ribs, but she wouldn't linger there and panic as Alana thought she would, she just got a hold of herself and forced herself to keep going. 

She admired her for it.

After some more questions Alana accompanied the girl out, she let her go and returned to speak with Jack, face as hard as her eyes.

"You believe her?"

"I think Abigail Hobbs is damaged. She did not demonstrate at any moment that she was hiding something, every reaction she had was to be expected and even if the girl was trying to hide anything it wouldn't be the murder of Nicholas Boyle Jack!"

"What makes you so sure?"

"Because any reservations I have about Abigail don't extend to Hannibal! Or even his daughter! They have no reason to lie about any of this!"

That made the agent stop and really look at her, without changing his tone of voice he spoke again.

"I will need to speak with this Lecter girl." 

She couldn't believe in what she was hearing.

"Jack you can't do that, it's too soon, she's still recovering. And besides what do you even think you can get out of her?"

"My decision is final Alana." He was already walking towards the door, as he passed her, she hurried to follow him, she didn't even try to hold back how angry she was when she spoke.

"You know she's not yet able to do this Jack, for god's sake you were there when she was rescued!"

Suddenly the man stopped and looked firmly at her, with a heavy tone that she'd only seen him using with a few trainees he spoke.

"Dr. Bloom, my decision is final."

Stunned the woman could only look as Jack walked away. 

#

Will only felt better after they dropped Abigail back at the psychiatric facility, where Alana insisted on staying to speak with the girl. 

Now here he was along with Hannibal back at Audra's room at the hospital. Both men decided to return there since they'd had no time at all to actually talk to the girl.

"How was Abigail?" Asked Audra, the girl looked far better now, stronger and more alert.

"A bit disturbed but still, it was to be expected after all that happened." Hannibal answered her, Will got a bit closer to the bed and sat at the end of it, close to the chair Hannibal was sitting on. He gave a heavy sigh and spoke.

"For now we can only imagine what truly happened to Nicholas Boyle... I still don't know what Jack expects by speaking with you though."

Oh yes, Alana told them.

Audra was nodding, a small frown gracing her face, there was still some bruises near her right eye Will noticed, he kept staring at it but was soon distracted by Hannibal's hand on his own, when he looked at the doctor he saw his characteristic minimalist smile, with a gentle tone he spoke again.

"But now is not the time to speak of such matters, Audra is finally awake and able to hold a longer conversation, let's not tire her yes?"

Well...

Will was discovering that Hannibal's paternal side was extremely alluring to him.

"Of course." As he said that he squeezed the doctor's hand, they stood there holding each other's hands until they heard a cough coming from the bed.

Audra was staring at them, eyes going from her father and back to Will as a smile took hold of her lips. She looked so much like Hannibal at that moment and Will loved it.

"Father?"

"Much has happened in your absence my dear, I'm sure you noticed the growing affection between Will and I. We simply acted on our desires."

That sounded so strangely clinical and formal in a way that made Will almost unconfortable, that was why he looked at Audra's eyes and spoke with as much caution as possible.

"I understand that it's been only the two of you for most of the time and I would hate to intrude, so I feel the need to ask, Audra would you consider the possibility of... Well, me?"

Her smile got a bit wider and a lot gentler when she heard his words, then she spoke.

"I won't lie and say that this is a surprise Will." At this both his eyebrows went up and she gave a small chuckle. "There is a word from the Yaghan language of Tierra del Fuego that cannot be translated to english but it applies in this case. It's _Mamihlapinatapai_ , the look shared by two people who both desire to initiate something but are both reluctant to start."

Of course she would bring some word from a distant language.

He threw a look at Hannibal at this, his influence on her was extremely obvious. The man was puffing his chest like a goddamn peacock, proudly smiling at her.

He would call it adorable if the word weren't so strange when compared to Hannibal.

She stopped speaking for a moment and contemplated the look on his face then continued.

"I've seen you two in this situation more then once, so I've had time to consider much about this and... I'm afraid I already see you as part of what we have Will." 

Will could feel a bright smile growing on his face and said.

"Then I think I'll stick around, perhaps eat some leftovers with you both."

At that Hannibal gave a small laugh. "I'm sure I can arrange something."

Will was about to say something more when his eyes caught the clock on the wall, it was late and he needed to leave and look after his dogs, he let out a sigh. 

"I need to get going." 

"Already?" 

"Yes, dogs need me home." As he said that he got closer to the girl sitting on the bed and gave a single kiss on her head. "I'll come visit again." 

"Ok, I'll see you later then." Replied her smiling, he returned it and promptly turned to walk to the door, as expected Hannibal was already on his feet and accompanying him, when they got to the corridor the empath stopped walking and looked at the doctor.

"I guess that makes it official then." 

Hannibal was smiling gently at him when he spoke. "I guess it does." He leaned down just a bit and sealed their lips together, it was just for a moment, only a goodbye kiss, but still Will couldn't fight the way his hand closed itself on the doctor's hair and pulled lightly, or how his body got closer and his other hand sneaked onto Lecter's waist, they were so close he could feel his heat, his soft and yet strong torso against him and...

With a low groan Hannibal ended the kiss, his hands were now resting on Will's cheek. His breathing was slightly heavier and his eyes darker. 

"Will..." There was a small amount of warning in Hannibal's voice when he said this and it sent shivers running down his back.

Will was transfixed.

"Yes... I should probably go. Goodbye Hannibal." He couldn't resist one last small kiss on the corner of Hannibal's mouth before he turned away and left.

After Will left, Hannibal returned to Audra's room, the girl gave him a conspiratory smile as she shook her head lightly, when she spoke it was in Lithuanian instead of English. She always did feel far more confortable speaking in their mother tongue then any other.

"You were successful then."

"We both were." As he spoke he sat down on the chair beside the bed, inclining his body forward. "I saw Tobias the day you got captured, you made quite the damage on him."

Her smile got a bit wider at that. 

"My father taught me." Hannibal couldn't find it in himself to smile at that, so he grabbed her hand and spoke closer to her.

"I am proud of you Audra, you won't go through any of that again, not if I can help it."

Her face crumbled slowly and finally she asked what he was expecting.

"Father, what happened with Tobias?" 

"He's dead."

"Did you kill him?"

"Yes."

"Did he suffer?"

"As much as I could make him suffer without it being seen as a homicide." She gave him a significant look after he said this, her hand was on top of his in an instant and her voice when she answered was small.

"Good." The girl kept staring up front for a moment, but then she seemed to compose herself and the smile was back in place, her mask reajusting accordingly to the situation.

Hannibal was more then happy to pretend that it didn't stung him to see her so vulnerable, both because he knew her full potential and his feelings for her. 

It seems like he's been more affected by all this then he thought.

"So, Jack Crawford will be coming here soon."

She was trying to divert them from the subject.

"Indeed, Abigail spoke about you to Jack just like we told her to, her innocence falls to us now."

"I'm sure he won't be coming here today, we'll have time to think about something. In the meanwhile you could tell me about your new... _relationship._ " He gave a small chuckle at her teasing tone. 

"I shall tell you anything within the limits of decency my dear."

The girl kept her teasing tone when she spoke next.

"That phrase is already outside those limits father."

He couldn't fight his smile now.

He'd really missed her.

**\- THE NEXT DAY -**

Abigail, covered in blood with a knife on her hands.

That was the only thing Will remembered from the dream he'd had that night, still it made a terrible thing grow inside his thoughts. 

Doubt.

He thought about the story of Abigail's attack over and over and everything made sense everything was... 

Conveniently perfect. 

That's why he was here now standing in front of Nicholas Boyle's body. He was afraid of what he might discover, but he still closed his eyes. 

\- x - x - x -

I am afraid. 

I fear for my life as Nicholas Boyle pushes me against the wall, there is no hesitation only clinical familiarity with how I deal with the hunting knife. 

I put the knife inside Boyle's abdomen and pull it up with precision as I stare into his eyes that look as frightened as mine...

\- x - x - x -

Will gasped loudly as he tried to recomposed himself, he couldn't handle to imagine what came to pass after that, now nothing of what he thought about the attack could be considered true.

Abigail was a murderer.

She killed Nicholas Boyle, probably hid the body, lied to them, to Jack and... 

Hannibal. 

Hannibal was there that night, could she have attacked him to prevent him from seeing the body or... 

Quickly he left the room, passing by Beverly and barely listening to her as she called his name. He needed to speak with Dr. Lecter.

#

"Abigail Hobbs killed Nick Boyle."

Please don't confirm it, please don't.

"Yes, I know."

Will felt his world crumble at that moment, Hannibal knew about the murder, he'd lied to him, Jack and everyone else. He was trying to control his breathing so his voice wouldn't tremble when he spoke next.

"Tell me why you know."

"I helped her dispose of the body."

The doctor looked calm, only a bit nervous perhaps, but still not enough to calm Will about any of it. Hannibal had been sitting down when Will arrived, now the man was standing up and walking around the table, getting closer to him. 

Hannibal helped Abigail dispose of the body, the man without apparent flaws did this. Will had noticed Hannibal's mask, had noticed there was a certain level of darkness inside him, particularly after that... Intimate night they spent together at his house. But this was the first proof of exactly how such darkness could manifest itself.

Strange how until this moment, Will only recognized the existence of the mask, but never wondered exactly what was behind it.

Control your breathing Graham, control yourself.

"Evidently not well enough."

"Have you told Jack Crawford?"

"No."

"Why not?" 

"Because I was hoping it wasn't true."

It was a terrible thing how his voice trembled and his whole posture got slightly more vulnerable, Hannibal's expression got gentle, in a way that made Will's stomach turn, it was so conforting and familiar.

"Well now you know the truth."

"Do I?" 

After saying that Will got close to the window, looking at the falling rain outside. From the corner of his eye he saw Hannibal approaching, when he spoke his voice was vivid.

"Everything you know about that night is true, except the end. Nicholas Boyle attacked us. Abigail's only crime was to defend herself and I lied about it."

"Why?"

"You know why. Because Jack Crawford would hang her for what her father's done, and the world would burn Abigail in his place. That would be what Freddie Lounds writes."

Will turned to him and the doctor used this chance to get closer, the empath now had to turn his head up to look at the other man while he spoke.

"Abigail is no more a killer than you are for shooting her father, or I am for the death of Tobias Budge."

"It isn't our place to decide." His voice was wavering, he knew he was giving in and he hated himself for it.

"If not ours, then whose? Who knows Abigail better than you and I? Or the burden she bears? We are her fathers now."

After a pause the doctor spoke again.

"We have to serve her better than Garret Jacob Hobbs."

He tried not to flinch at those words.

"Do I have to call my lawyer Will?" 

He couldn't control his hand from touching Hannibal's cheek, and the doctor quickly put his own hand on top of Will's fondly as the empath spoke.

"No... I understand why you've done it, but Hannibal you are an accomplice in a murder." After he said that he took his hand away from Lecter's face and took a step back, face going empty. The loving man was gone. The agent took his place.

"You follow the same pattern as the story of the attack Hannibal, both of you have no flaw, everything is abnormaly perfect. No one is like that unless they try really hard, why are you trying so hard Dr. Lecter? What've you got to hide?" 

Now Lecter's face was less gentle, but still calm. It didn't change when Will got closer to him again, be it by a force of habit or instinct, the empath got hold of Hannibal's hands and intertwined their fingers together, while he stared deeply into the doctor's eyes he spoke.

"I've seen you Hannibal, whatever it is that you're hiding is dangerous to both you and your daughter and I won't let you destroy her with it. Even Abigail is close enough to get caught up in the fire."

As he searched in Hannibal's eyes he found nothing, no crack on his defences. Feeling tired already, Will let his head fall forward so his forehead was now between Lecter's shoulder and neck.

"Either you let me in or I won't be able to protect any of you." Will hated the sound of his voice as he said this, his emotional state compromised him at this moment and Hannibal was quick to envelop him in his arms, making the empath sigh.

"Dear Will... I would never endanger those whom I hold dear, especially the family we've just created."

Hannibal took hold of Will's head and made it so the younger man was looking at him.

"You can trust me Will, we are doing the right thing."

Will was trying really hard to believe him, after the body disposal news it was a bit hard, but still he nodded.

"We can't tell anyone."

"We won't."

As they both watched the rain falling outside, Will's head on Hannibal's shoulder as they embraced, the empath tried not to think about what lying to Jack about Nick's murder said about him and what he might be becoming.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There you go, I like to think that now Will will become far more aware of what Hannibal is doing, he just doesn't associate it with Audra or Abigail. What did you guys think? Remember comments, ideas and critics are always welcome.  
> Thank you so much for reading!


	19. Decisões

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Audra returns home, Alana learns about Will and Hannibal's relationship and decisions need to be made regarding our dear empath.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I cannot handle the third season already and there is only one episode yet, oh god. 
> 
> Anyways, here is another chapter! This one was a little tricky to write so I'm not REALLY confident, if there's anything wrong just put it in the comments and I'll try not to commit the same mistake again.  
> Here is the music Audra plays, in my head she only plays it up until 3:54 of this video:  
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y3v1nFmC-K8  
> Also here is the expensive wine: http://www.italianwinemerchants.com/Poggio-di-Sotto-Brunello-di-Montalcino-Riserva-200-p/rd6102.htm
> 
> Good reading I hope you all like it!
> 
> Disclaimer: I own nothing regarding Hannibal.

"I appreciate you taking this time to see me Miss Lecter, even with the current circumstances."

"Of course, it's good to see you Agent Crawford." Audra said that with a gentle smile, she was sitting on her bed, hands crossed in front of her watching as Jack moved and sat on the chair beside the bed.

He gave her a smile, it was by all means a strategic one, meant to calm her and to give the illusion of companionship. As the head of the BAU the agent was expected to be good at what he did, the only problem is that it wouldn't be enough to be only 'good' with her. 

Audra was raised by one of the best.

In result to that, the girl had to conceive her amusement at this whole situation, it was clear to her that she was under Jack's scrutiny, one slip and she would compromise not only herself, but also Abigail and her father. Maybe even Will now that he knew about what truly happened to Nicholas Boyle. 

Still.

It was almost funny to watch the man thinking he was in control.

"Your name was given to me by Abigail Hobbs, I'm told you two are close friends?"

"Yes."

When it became clear she wouldn't say anything else Jack seemed to change tactics when he spoke.

"I understand you were with Abigail when you were attacked?"

"I was."

"Hm... Abigail goes to Minesotta and Marissa Schuur dies, Abigail goes home and Dr. Lecter and Bloom are attacked, Abigail walks with you and you are attacked, Abigail returns to Baltimore and we find the body of Nicholas Boyle. Don't you see a pattern here?"

Oh he was good.

Audra couldn't stop the interest from showing in her eyes when he said those words, there was indeed a pattern, Abigail was involved in many events, but she wasn't the link between all those things.

Her father was.

It was time to change tactics as well.

"I can see your point Agent Crawford."

"Let me tell you, in my line of work there are no such things as coincidences. I am here because I need your help to connect those incidents, as you are close to Abigail you could give us some insight on her thoughts about all this."

In other words, tell me everything you know about Abigail Hobbs.

"Unfortunately I can't give you much Jack, Abigail doesn't speak about anything that has happened to her." She allowed a frown to grace her face and gave a heavy sigh, after that spoke again.

"All I know is that she was having nightmares, sometimes with her father, sometimes she would relive what happened with Nick Boyle at her house..." 

That made the man incline himself forward on his chair, interest shone in his eyes now. She had to control her anger as he so rudely interrupted her.

"Especifically him?"

"Well he did attack her, it's not easy to forget something like that, I can relate. There are still some nights when I dream about Tobias returning for me." 

There are many things people are willing to believe about a young woman, the reason behind it really doesn't matter, the effects will always be the same. One of the things people are prone to believe will always be that she is, somehow, weak. That was what made her different from her father, he's always been primarily a hunter, while Audra interleaves between hunting and fishing, she lures her victims and one of her most powerful aspects was to accentuate their belief on her weakness. 

Which is why after she spoke about Tobias, her breath wavered and her lips trembled. She closed her arms around herself and made her whole figure smaller and defenseless, a frown formed on her forehead while she briefly closed her eyes and shook her head, as if trying to forget something. 

The effect was imediate.

Jack's posture crumbled lightly and sadness crept its way into his eyes, he extended his left hand and put it on her elbow, after a small squeeze he spoke again, tone of voice far more gentle and calm. 

"I'm sorry, Tobias Budge cannot hurt you again, your father took care of that."

She was nodding, still looking down. When her eyes got up she allowed a small smile on her lips.

"I never had the chance of thanking you for helping me."

Of course not, Will helped her not Jack.

"There is no need Miss Lecter, I'm just glad you are ok."

Their little dance continued for some time after this, Audra diverting Jack's questions just like her father had told her to do, insuring Abigail's innocence as she went. She noticed his expression getting frustrated after a while.

"Abigail mentioned you met with her outside the facility some nights, where would you both go?"

Huh.

Took him long enough to ask that one.

"Sometimes we went to the city, but once she heard someone saying something about her and was afraid to go there again, after that we mostly went to the woods."

"What did she hear?" She shrugged at that.

"She wasn't very clear about it, only said that she wanted to leave because she'd heard something."

The man was about to ask her more questions but was interrupted by a nurse. Her timing was surprisingly perfect, which made Audra narrow her eyes lightly. 

"Excuse me? I'm so sorry to interrupt like this, but Audra needs to rest, she's been awake for far too long already."

Hm... No? 

From the corner of her eyes she saw Jack giving the nurse a small nod, soon after that he got up and directed the next words at her. 

"Thank you for you time, now please excuse me." He gave another nod to the nurse and got out of the room, leaving both women alone inside. Audra's gaze was fixed on the woman, wary of anything that she might do when suddenly the nurse smiled brightly and walked back to the door, she put her head outside and said something to someone, a moment after this her father walked into the room.

Oh.

Now everything made sense.

The stories of how he would charm the nurses of every single hospital he worked preceded him and Audra watched fascinated the way he moved around the woman, a bright grateful smile on his face as he spoke with a soft and yet humorous tone, receiving her giggles with a wider smile that made wrinkles appear around his eyes. So different from his usual self and yet it didn't look false at all. 

She truly admired him.

After some time the nurse was unable to ignore her job anymore and had to leave the room, leaving them alone.

"Really? The nurse?"

He got closer to the bed, he had a coat in hand as well as a bag in front of his body, while he spoke, still smiling.

"One should never ignore such good allies in a hospital." She chuckled a bit and spoke again.

"I'll try not to forget that. All went well with Jack by the way, I can't say he doesn't suspect Abigail anymore though."

"Jack will continue to suspect her no matter how many evidences there are in her favour, but this is not why I'm here." 

"Did something happen?"

"No, I'm here to take you home. I've already spoken with the doctor responsible for your treatment and we've agreed that I'm perfectly able to look after your remaining injuries."

"You mean my leg and head?"

"Indeed, I brought you some clothes, we can go as soon as you are ready." He extended the bag to her, a pleased expression on his face. 

Audra was just staring, a smile quickly appeared on her lips as she saw the clothes inside the bag.

"How did you manage to get me out of here so quickly?"

"I've had some help."

"From who?" She was already trying to get up from the bed, Hannibal got up and assisted, her injured leg made her movements slow and precarious. Already standing she looked up to him and saw his amused smile, when he spoke his tone was completely conspiratorial.

"The nurses."

She couldn't help the laugh that escaped her.

#

Will hated situations like this. 

Here he was in the middle of a store he'd never been before trying to find wine, but not just any wine, it had to be something Hannibal would appreciate and he was completely lost.

The man called him a few hours ago inviting him to go to his house that afternoon, apparently he had a surprise for him, after some insistence from his part Hannibal had told him to bring some wine. It was only during his last class that he realized he knew nothing of wines, he prefered whiskey after all.

Besides that he couldn't sleep the night before, still thinking about Abigail and his discovery of what truly happened with Nicholas Boyle, Hannibal's part in it still made him cringe and he needed to speak with the man about this soon, he needed to understand the reasons behind such action. Not the public reason that Jack represented. He wanted to know Lecter's personal motivations. 

So here he was, staring at the bottles for longer then he would like to admit with no idea of what to do.

"Will?"

He turned and saw Alana, she had a basket on one of her arms and was looking at him with a kind smile on her face and an expression that reminded him that he hadn't really worked out things with her yet.

Shit.

"Hello."

"What are you doing here? A bit far from Wolf's Trap." She said that while supporting the basket on her hip, this would take a while then. He gave a sigh and answered.

"Hannibal invited me to his house and I was suppose to bring wine, only..."

"You have no idea what to take."

That only got a nod out of him and soon the woman was chuckling, she positioned herself at his side and pointed to a specific bottle on the shelf.

"Hannibal enjoys this one."

Will extended his arm to get it and read its name.

_Poggio di Sotto Brunello di Montalcino Riserva 2004._

Then he looked at the price and exhaled briskly.

**$ 499,00**

Oh the things we do for... Those who are dear for us. 

He was not ready for that word yet.

"So, are you taking it?" She spoke that with a teasing tone of voice, almost daring him to take it. Will looked at the bottle again and murmured.

"Well if you're sure he'll enjoy it..."

He was so focused on the wine he lost the way her easy smile left her face, a frown formed on her forehead as she began putting the pieces together. Faced with her silence the empath turned his eyes to the woman just in time to see her eyes widen when she fully understood what was happening.

"Alana..."

"You're in a relationship with Hannibal." She sounded incredulous and a bit breathless.

"I... Yes, I'm sorry."

"Sorry? Will if this is about what happened in your house don't worry, I can handle it." Right after she said that her frown returned in full power and then she spoke again, voice vivid and angry.

"What I can't handle is Hannibal allowing any of this to be happening, he is your psychiatrist for god's sake!"

"No he's not." His voice got a bit hollow now, as did his expression.

"Oh please, just because it's not written somewhere it doesn't change anything, he is responsible for your therapy and your relationship is still unbalanced because of it, honestly I can't believe he would..."

"Alana." She startled when he interrupted her with such a cold voice. He really thought about saying what was in his mind at that moment, but he wouldn't destroy their friendship so quickly because of something like this. He could understand her reasons after all, so he calmed his expression and tried to add some warmth in his voice. 

He failed.

"Thank you for helping me with the wine, now please excuse me." With the bottle still in hand, he started walking around the woman towards the cashier when he felt her hand on his elbow, stopping him.

"Will please, you need to talk to me about this."

"No, I don't." And with those final words he freed his elbow from her grasp and got away, ignoring her voice as she called his name. 

Well, that could've been worse.

The wine could've been far more expensive.

#

Hannibal answered the door with a smile but quickly put one finger in front of his lips in a silence sign and invited him in. 

Music.

That was the first thing he heard when he got inside the house. It was a haunting tune, dragged on by the violin with soft notes that mingled in between a deep sadness and a great achievement. He could tell the melody was telling a story, but he suspected that like many others he wasn't able to fully comprehend its depth. 

It was with that beautiful sinking feeling that Will turned the corner of the entrance hall and saw Audra at the living room playing the violin. Her eyes were closed and her expression varied from calm bliss and pain as the song went on, she was standing in front of the fireplace as she delicately swayed in the music's rhythm. He watched fascinated as her fingers moved and soon the girl noticed his presence and stopped playing with a bright smile on her face. 

With quick steps Will was closer to her and envolved her in his arms, being careful not to break the bottle of wine he still caried with him as well as her violin. When he got away, still smiling at her he spoke.

"That was beautiful Audra."

"The Devil's Trill, of Tartini. Seemed appropriate." She replied with a small shrug. Hannibal got closer to Will and took the wine from him, when he looked at the name a sincere smile took hold of his lips.

"Brunello di Montalcino, one of my favourite wines. Thank you Will." The doctor kissed his head and promptly went into the kitchen to store the wine, leaving Will and Audra alone at the living room. As they sat down, Audra on the armchair and Will at the sofa, the girl spoke.

"Well, surprise."

"Yes, how long has it been since you've returned?" 

"Actually it was today, father charmed his way through the nurses and accelerated the process." That made the empath frown.

"The nurses?" 

"The best allies one could have in a hospital." That was Hannibal arriving with two glasses of wine, handing one to Will and sitting on his side at the sofa. 

"Or so you keep saying father."

"I speak nothing further from the truth my dear."

Will watched their exchange of words with a smile and sipped the wine, it tasted divine and as he took hold of Hannibal's hand he looked at it for a brief moment. 

The wine was moving, slowly rising until the cup began overflowing, getting on his hands and his clothes. His eyes widened and a heavy frown came down on him and he blinked. 

One blink. 

It was all it took.

Now there was a girl under him, her face was violently cut but she was still alive, staring at him with fear and incredulity, as if she couldn't believe he was doing this to her. There was so much blood and she began drowning in it, his empathy made it all worse for all of her agony was being thrown at him all at once and he was panicking already. 

He looked at the knife on his hand and his breathing became even more erratic, not knowing what else to do he quickly got up and ran to the door, opening it and bracing himself against it. 

"Will?"

Jack?

Not only Jack but the whole team. 

Oh God.

This was a crime scene... He had lost time again. 

It was outside that Jack cornered him. 

"Will, you contaminated the crime scene. You've never done that before."

"I thought I was responsible for it."

"What are you saying? You thought that you killed that woman in there?"

"Sometimes with, uh, what I do..." Jack interrupted him.

"What you do is you take all of the evidence available at a crime scene. You reconstruct the thinking of a killer, you don't think of yourself as the killer."

Oh Jack, how wrong you are. 

"I got lost in the reconstruction, just for a second. Just a blink."

After that phrase Will's mind got blank, vaguely he remembered Jack saying more things to him, the forensic trio examining the crime scene, sometimes he would colaborate with an insight or another, but his mind was somewhere else.

He needed to speak with Hannibal.

And that is what he did as soon as he left the crime scene, after a quick phone call to warn the man of his presence he arrived at the doctor's home. Hurrying up he got to the front door and knocked. Lecter's smile when he answered the door soon died when he saw Will's distressed expression, without saying a word he moved his body aside so the empath would come inside.

"What happened?" 

While pasing around the living room he spoke. "Did Audra come home yesterday?"

"Yes, you came here and had dinner with us." The doctor frowned and spoke again. "You lost time again."

"Yes, one moment I am drinking wine with you and the next there is a girl bleeding under me, I didn't know it was a crime scene, I thought I had killed her."

Hannibal got closer and put one of his hands on his jaw and started movind his fingers slightly, the calming effect was almost instantaneous. 

"Tell me about it."

" I remember cutting into her, I remember watching her die... There was so much blood." Raising his hands and getting a hold of Hannibal's suit he continued. "I caught a glimpse of myself in the mirror, and I looked right through me, past me, as if I was a was just a stranger." 

"Will, you have to honestly confront your limitations with what you do and how it affects you."

"If by limitations you mean the difference between sanity and insanity, I don't accept that."

"What do you accept?"

"I know what kind of crazy I am, and this isn't that kind of crazy. This could be seizures, a tumor or even a blood clot."

"I can recommend a neurologist if you want, but if it isn't physiological, then you have to accept what you're struggling with is mental illness."

The empath felt lips on his forehead, gently making their way towards his lips, gently taking some of the worry away each time they touched him. When those lips met his he allowed his mind to blank completely, getting lost in the heat of Hannibal's mouth was easy. His hands were already sneaking up and getting a strong hold on the doctor's hair, his body was almost moving on its own when he pressed up against the other man, letting a small sound leave his throat as Hannibal intensified the kiss, his hold on Will's waist getting tighter. 

But they needed air and had to end the kiss at some point, their breathing was mingling together so close as they were, Hannibal's voice when he spoke was rough and low, accent somewhat stronger now that he wasn't so much in control anymore.

"You're in very good hands."

"Yes, I am." And with that he dragged the doctor back to another kiss.

It was long before Will actually left to take care of his dogs.

#

"He is breaking."

Audra's voice came softly from the end of the stairs, when Hannibal looked at her he saw her arms were crossed and her hair tied up as she looked at the door with a calm expression on her face. 

"Do you know what he has?"

"I suspect encephalitis." He hadn't moved from his spot yet, just staring at her as she turned her eyes to him.

"And what do you intend to do about it? Let him break completely or be the one to save him?"

An interesting question. 

In many ways Will was much like a stray dog, he would remember the good deeds done in his name and the people responsible for it and his favour would heavily depend on it. Even if Hannibal was to tell the whole truth to the empath about himself and his daughter, saving him now would weight the empath's future decision in his favour, making the man less prone to betray him.

On the other hand Will would be much more easy to manipulate and control if he was as vulnerable as possible and the disease was a perfect way of achieving that. 

"What to do indeed..."

He would have to decide that soon.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just to clarify something, I'm not trying to be a cockblock or something, I just noticed that no kiss goesmuch further on this fic and that's because I like to think that when they finally spend the night together, Will will have surrendered completely already. 
> 
> Hannibal's doubt at the end is actually my own doubt about Will's encephalitis, if you guys have any suggestions I would love to read them, as well as critics and such. 
> 
> Thanks so much for reading!


	20. A Maré Vira

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Audra is afraid of Will recovering, Hannibal remembers what happened in Lithuania between him and Audra 7 years ago, Will's disease is exposed, intimate moments happen and Jack is a bro.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> One word to explain why I took so long to update this: College.  
> So here is the new chapter! I would like to thank raima_evans for the amazing comment that helped a lot for writing this chapter, as you may have noticed I changed the rating of the fic because of obvious reasons! Heh.
> 
> TRANSLATIONS:  
> Mano mylimoji = My sweetheart.
> 
> I hope you guys like it! Good reading!
> 
> Disclaimer: I own nothing regarding Hannibal.

"You are going to save him."

It was dark outside already and the Lecters were sitting by the fireplace, Hannibal looked away from the fire as he heard Audra's voice, with one lifted eyebrow he spoke.

"And what makes you think that?"

The girl chuckled amused and spoke, still not looking at him.

"Perhaps in another world you wouldn't risk so much for someone, but in this one he's far too important for you to break him."

"You are afraid."

"Yes, if you help him father, he will discover the truth about us. It's inevitable."

Hannibal gave a sigh at that and inclined his body forward towards her, the girl's distress over the situation was obvious to him. He wouldn't lie and say he couldn't sympathise with that, from the start he had known that Will discovering him would be a constant possibility, but now there was too much to lose, Audra returned to him, Abigail appeared and Will was no longer a simple curiosity. 

He was his. 

And Hannibal took care of what was his. 

But doesn't that include Audra? Even Abigail?

He had left his daughter once and he wasn't planning on doing it again, such treason from his part had only been possible because of an amateurish mistake he'd commited. He remembered it clearly.

She was 13 years old at the time, still in learning process but already successful enough that he let her take some of the organs herself, with his supervision of course. Everything was going according to plan, they took the victim, a rather rude woman he'd met a few months before at a parking lot, she had scratched his car with her own by accident of course, there would be no problem if she had been polite, but she chose to make a scene at the place, calling him crude names needlessly, getting inside her car and driving away leaving him no chance to speak not even a word to her. Now there she was, lying down with arms and legs opened wide, still alive but for not long as Audra took her kidney and prepared to take her heart, he gave instructions to the girl as usual and watched proudly as her hand never wavered while she cut into the woman. 

As he took a few steps back to watch as the young girl put her arm inside the woman's chest to take the organ, he noticed how alike to the Vitruvian Man she was positioned and got inspired. 

Inspired and distracted. 

Which is why he only heard the police sirens when they were already close, he approached the door of the barn they were inside and saw the cars getting closer. He acted on instinct, quickly getting hold of his things and leaving, he only faintly remembered Audra calling his name, first in confusion and then in panic, only to stay in silence after that. 

He stayed a few days hidden and accompanied the case from afar, it was only a matter of time to learn that they had been followed, one of the woman's neighbours had seen them speaking with her and taking her away, as he knew the woman he was sure that there was something wrong, waited half an hour and followed the car's tracks on the snow. He claimed to have seen a man and a young girl torturing her, but couldn't be sure of the man's appearance for he hadn't been able to see his face. A curious thing was that they never showed Audra's face to the public or even her name, they only explained the story. Now he knew this was his uncle's doing. 

He left the country not long after that.

Now as he looked at her face, so changed by time and cruelty he knew he couldn't abandon her again. That was when the reason behind her distress became clear to him. 

"You fear abandonment."

"I fear betrayal, it was I who suffered the consequences last time you risked so much."

"I can assure you that nothing of the sort will happen again, or do you doubt me?" Her eyes finally turned to him at that, the flames made red points dance in them as she stared at him with clear anger. When she spoke, her voice betrayed nothing of what she was feeling.

"When Will Graham is involved, yes father, I doubt you."

Oh he couldn't have that. 

Audra was someone important to what he had in mind, he couldn't have the girl turning on him now. He knew of what she was capable of, but she knew the same of him as well.

"I need to be able to trust you Audra, I suggest you don't create any sort of plan parallel to what I have in mind regarding Will Graham."

Her eyes got fractionally wider and soon moved to the floor chastised, but still frowning. 

"I know you father... I would be mad to do anything of the sort." 

"Ah... Mano mylimoji." The kind words made her eyes turn to him again with light surprise in them, he extended one of his hands and enveloped one of hers, with a kind voice he continued. 

"There is much for me to redeem myself for, I know. But we are family and not even Will Graham can interfere with that, rest assured you will always come first." 

Now her eyes were completely wide as well as her lips, it was rare of him to say those things to her, he wasn't lying of course, but those words were only said with the purpose to get her to willingly help him.

"I know what you are doing."

Oh well, it was worth a shot.

Something must have shown on his face for she started laughing, when she stopped, she put her other hand on top of his and said.

"There is no need for that, I'll help. With one condition of course."

The audacity of this girl. 

He gave a gesture for her to continue.

"You need to prepare everything for us to leave as soon as possible, if we are found we should be able to leave at any time with no delay, I'm sure you can agree with that." 

"I will make the arrangements." It was a sensible request after all.

"Very well, tell me what do you have in mind then." 

And he did.

#

"So what was his name again?"

"Dr.Sutcliffe, he and I were residents together at Hopkins."

"Oh, so you trust him."

They were both walking towards the clinic to see Sutcliffe, Hannibal suddenly stopped and put one hand on his shoulder to stop him as well.

"I wouldn't take you to someone I didn't trust Will, don't worry it'll be fine."

Will gave him a nod and both men continued their walk into the clinic. Already inside the doctor's office the empath noticed with amusement the way Sutcliffe acted around Hannibal, it was strange to see someone so carefree with him. 

"Hannibal Lecter! It's been a long time, how are you?"

"Donald." Lecter smiled as he shook the other man's hand. "I'm afraid much has changed since Hopkins. Allow me to introduce you to Will Graham."

"A pleasure Mr. Graham." As he said that he shook Will's hand, but soon returning his attention to Lecter. "Many changes of course, that was another life, back when you weren't afraid to get your hands a little dirty."

"I was always drawn to how the mind works. I found it much more dynamic than how the brain works."

"The projected image is more interesting than the projector, until, of course, the projector breaks down, please sit."

They did and the usual questions began to happen.

"So, Will, these headaches. When did they begin in earnest?" 

"Two to three months ago."

"About the time Will went back into the field, which is when I met him." Hannibal interviened, making the other doctor throw a look at him then back to Will and raise his eyebrows fractionaly.

"And the hallucinations?"

"I can't really say when they started... Hm... I just slowly became aware that I might not be dreaming."

"Well, I believe a brain scan is in order, we can only speculate until then. I'll see if it can be made right now, for old times sake." He said that to Hannibal, gave Will a nod and then left the room to make the arrangements.

"Well that was something."

"He is very competent." Hannibal said with a smile towards the door, making Will roll his eyes.

"I'm sure he is."

#

"It's encephalitis."

"That's your pre-diagnosis?"

"Yes."

"Based on?"

"I could smell it."

That earned him an incredulous look.

"So your sense of smell has gone from calling out a nurse's perfume to diagnosing autoimmune disease."

"He started sleepwalking and I noticed a very specific scent."

"And what exactly does encephalitis smell like?"

"It has heat. A fevered sweetness."

"If you suspected, why didn't you say something?"

"Had to be sure. Symptoms began slowly and gradually worsened and yesterday, I asked him to draw a clock. This is what he drew." He showed Sutcliffe Will's draw and watched as the man's eyebrows got up and his eyes got wide.

"Oh, spatial neglect."

"Headaches, disorientation, hallucinations, altered consciousness. It's all the telltale signs."

The machine made a noise announcing the results and both man approached the screen to see Will's brain bright on it.

"The right side of his brain is completely inflamed." Said Sutcliffe breathlessly staring at the screen.

"It's anti-NMDA receptor encephalitis." Replied Hannibal.

"The symptoms are only going to get worse."

"I know, it's unfortunate for Will."

"What do you smell on me?" He was joking of course, but that phrase opened the door Hannibal was waiting for. Now was the time to decide if Will Graham would break or not.

#

"Encephalitis?"

"Yes, more specificaly autoimmune encephalitis, it's an acute inflammation of the brain. If you see here." He pointed at Will's brain at the screen. "The right side of your brain is almost completely inflamed, luckily there is treatment..."

The rest of the consult was a blur to him.

Encephalitis.

He wasn't crazy, there was a treatment and he would get better.

His eyes turned to Hannibal beside him, he was paying attention to what Sutcliffe said, probably to help him later on with all the drugs he would have to take. He couldn't believe his luck at the moment, here was Hannibal, with his balanced safe life, willing to take Will in even with all the problems and dangers he represented to him and his daughter, he was helping him without asking for nothing in return, he thought that as he looked at Lecter's profile, the man soon turned to him with that minimalist smile of his, making his eyes go gentle and small wrinkles form around them, a fondness so sincere being thrown at him that made him breathless. His heart skipped a bit, his stomach gave a flip and Will's reaction was a bit more public then he would've liked. 

He frowned heavily and gave one step back, making Hannibal's expression become worried as he said his name in an inquisitive tone.

Oh God.

He was in love with Hannibal Lecter.

"Will?"

"... What? I... Yes, yes everything is fine don't worry." He watched as both doctors exchanged glances, it was good that they thought something was wrong with him, better then the alternative at least. 

"Well, Hannibal assured me he would look after your treatment, he is capable and I'm sure you are in good hands. If anything unsusual happens you call me and I'll disponibilize the hospital."

"Thank you Dr. Sutcliffe."

They all shook hands and left, as Will had no idea of the clinic's adress he came with Hannibal and so the man took him home again, both said nothing during the whole trip up until the moment the car stopped in front of Will's home, it was late afternoon, the sky was just turning orange with the sunset. 

"Do you want to come in?"

"Of course."

Will's house was a mess when they got inside, the dogs hurried to greet them and to smell Hannibal, who was dealing with all this in a better way then he thought he would, allowing them to smell his hand and lick it sometimes. But Will's had enough and gave a high whistle, making the dogs back away from the doctor and settle on their beds.

Hannibal took his coat and put him on a chair and approached Will, the empath stood by the kitchen counter still without saying a word, when he saw the doctor getting closer to him he turned his body towards the man.

Lecter got closer to him and stood at Will's arm reach but did nothing besides look at him. There must have been something in his eyes because Will felt heat sneak through his body like shivers and gave one step forward, putting his hands on the man's chest and slowly dragging them up and around his neck, he felt Hannibal's heartbeat when he pressed his body to his, it felt strangely intimate.

Both men were embracing at his kitchen, the house was strangely quiet, only their breathing could be heard, the empath slowly tilted his head to get closer to the man, his heart was erratic inside his chest, his trembling breathing came through his already parted lips. His eyes were fighting to stay open and look at those lips getting closer to his own, those eyes that looked as gentle as they were possessive.

He felt Hannibal's hands sneaking onto his waist, fingers furtively getting under his shirt to caress his skin, sending shivers through him. There was something lurking in those eyes, it was as if the doctor was barely containing himself at the moment, and when sudden images of Hannibal on top of him on the floor of his house came onto his mind he got hold of the doctor's hair tightly.

"Thank you." He whispered before finally closing the distance.

It was sweet, even with the obvious tension surrounding them. The invisible leash that was holding them both back was like a promise of things to come, every touch insinuated something, the way Hannibal's hands went up and down slowly on his skin or how Will would suck on the other man's lower lip in retribution. It was a battle with no winners, they moved their lips lazily, tongues meeting each other and exploring each other's mouths.

Hannibal's lips left his own and traveled down towards his neck, leaving small bites, kisses and licks on the way down, Will lifted his head to expose more of himself to the other man, his closed eyes making every sensation more intense, also surprising, for the tips of Lecter's fingers found their way into his pants, languidly caressing his hip bone and getting closer to his sex. The empath couldn't stop the heavy breath that left him, his hold on the doctor tighened and on instinct he pushed his hips forward, making Hannibal let a pleased sound near his ear. 

They said nothing, it seemed words would just spoil things, this moment when Hannibal finally puts his right hand inside his pants as his left one opened the zipper for better access, their breathing getting mixed as he started to move his hand around Will's already hard sex in a tortuous rhythm, his bites on Will's neck became stronger as his own desperation became obvious, but he wouldn't go faster much to Will's sweet torture. 

Back and forward that hand would go, but it wasn't enough for him, he needed more. For that reason the empath took hold of Hannibal's hand on him, startling the man and making him look at his eyes, still staring at those beautiful maroon eyes Will took control of Hannibal's rhythm, guiding the doctor's hand and moving it faster, tighter, he could feel the heat growing inside him, he was getting closer and closer, lips parted with light groans escaping him. Hannibal got hold of his curls then, pulling at them with strenght.

"Will..."

That did it. 

That grave voice, so low almost growling at him on his ear made the pleasure arrive at its peak and soon he was coming. The sweet pleasurable convulsions took hold of him, a long low moan left his lips and he could feel Hannibal watching him as he came undone. It seemed like an eternity had passed, but soon it was gone, his heavy breathing interrupted by the doctor's lips on his, kissing him with desperation and need. When they parted Will noticed he Hannibal was still hard, as he moved his hand towards him, the doctor stopped him. 

"There is no need, this... This was about you my dear Will."

Now Lecter was staring at his eyes with pure adoration on his eyes, he smiled and touched his forehead to Will's and said gently.

"I feel the same."

Wait what.

"What?"

"You are very expressive Will." His tone was amused as he said this.

Huh.

"That's... Good, that's good."

Hannibal chuckled at his reaction and Will allowed his eyes to fall shut and his body to relax for the first time in days.

**\- NEXT DAY -**

It was late afternoon and Will was looking at Jack as the man saw the results of his brain scan.

"Encephalitis?"

"Yes, I'll have to stay off work for a while." 

Jack let a heavy sigh at that, still it sounded... Relieved? 

"There is treatment for this I hope?"

"Yes, Hannibal is helping me with that."

"Ah yes Hannibal, Alana came in here a few days ago to tell me of her concern regarding your relationship with him."

Will stared at Jack, the man had his elbows on his desk, fingers crossed in front of his chin. His eyes and smile were amused to say the least as he looked back at him. 

"And to what conclusion have you arrived to Jack?" 

Crawford took in his sudden defensive posture and tone and gave a small nod and replied.

"Hannibal Lecter is a very competent psychiatrist and a very good man, you were never oficially his patient so no laws are being broken here." 

Throwing himself back on his chair, Jack continued.

"And I can't say I've ever seen you so stable before, Hannibal is good for you, in many ways as I can see... Without him we wouldn't even know about your disease for god's sake."

Will held his breath.

"I'm not here to grant you permission Will, nor to prohibit you of anything. Just know that I am happy for you. If anyone here deserves this happiness, it's you."

The empath was looking down as Jack finished his phrase, with a smile on his lips he lifted his eyes and looked to the man smiling back at him from behind the desk. 

"Thank you Jack."

"It's ok Will, now, about you being off work for a while..."

They spoke for another half an hour after this and when Will left his office he drove straight to Hannibal, that morning he had called him inviting him to dinner with Audra and Abigail, the doctor told him he should arrive earlier to help prepare the food with him. 

It was with a smile he drove there.

For the first time in a long time, Will Graham was happy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am really insecure about that intimate scene between them, I wanted it to feel different and at first I thought I had managed, but you never know right?  
> As you can see Audra is afraid of dear Will
> 
> So what did you guys think?  
> Remember critics and ideas are always welcome! Thanks so much for reading.


	21. Desmascarado

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Will knows.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know it's been far too long but come on, Hannibal got cancelled and we've all been engaged with #SaveHannibal on Twitter, also the tonights episode and holy damn, too much happened this week. The good news is that my semester is ending so I'll have more time to write! YEY! 
> 
> ALSO I DRAWED AUDRA! I know it's not THAT much like the first image I posted, but this is another possile way to see her. Here is the link: http://aburi.deviantart.com/art/Audra-Lecter-Throne-of-Skulls-542153490
> 
> I hope you guys like this chapter, soo much happens in it.
> 
> Disclaimer: I own nothing related to Hannibal.

They were almost dancing around each other at the kitchen. 

As Will cut some of the vegetables, Hannibal would pass behind him and caress the back of his neck lightly with his fingertips, Will in return would take the moment the other man was searching for the meat at the fridge to admire his figure.

Kisses, smiles and easy conversation were exchanged as they prepared tonights dinner. 

Will knew that they were still affected by their recent intimacy, that this was probably just a honeymoon phase or something, but still. He liked the feeling it gave him, the happiness he felt while driving to Hannibal's home hadn't left him yet and he didn't want it to. 

Faintly he heard Audra playing the violin at her room, Abigail hadn't arrived yet, an encounter with Freddie Lounds kept the girl, but she assured them that she would be there in time for dinner so he wasn't worried. 

"What exactly am I helping to make here?"

Lecter's voice was proud when he spoke next.

"İskender kebap, one of the most famous dishes of northwestern Turkey." 

"Of course it is." He rolled his eyes as he said that and resumed to cut the vegetables. Hannibal didn't press the issue, busy as he was with the meat, but his smile did become wider at the empath's action. The sudden knocking at the door startled Will, making him cut one of his fingers as he sliced a tomato, he grimaced and made a small sound, dropping the knife and taking hold of his finger. Hannibal was beside him in a second. 

"Let me see."

"It's nothing really." He showed the hand to the doctor and flinched slightly when he took hold of it and looked at the finger. The cut wasn't that deep, but blood kept pouring out of it making it look worse then it really was, with a humming noise Hannibal gave one step closer to the empath and spoke in a low tone.

"You are correct, there is no reason for worry." He then did something Will was not expecting to enjoy that much. 

All the while keeping a heated eye contact with the empath, Hannibal put his finger in his mouth and sucked lightly, pressing his tongue gently around the wound, licking the blood. Lecter closed his eyes and let a low sound leave his throat and sucked a bit harder. 

And Will?

Will was frozen on the spot. 

He knew his mouth was open, it had to be. It was all so sudden, Hannibal was so close and there was a strange intensity to this moment, a new side of the other man he hadn't seen before, much less careful then usual. It was like peeking behind the curtain and he couldn't help the small moan he let out. 

"Father there's someone at the door... Oh." 

Will gave a smal jump, while Hannibal merely raised his eyebrows and looked at the girl, still not letting go of the other man's finger. 

There was a second of awkward silence as Audra watched them both from the kitchen's entrance and then Will spoke.

"Uh... Audra could you get the door please?" 

The girl nodded, smiling amused at the whole situation, without another word she turned and went to answer the door, leaving them together again. With one last suck and lick Lecter finally let go of Will's finger, turned his back to him and just said.

"Shall we finish the dish?"

Just like that. 

The empath just shook his head smiling and turned from the other man, he went to check on his finger when he heard Audra's voice coming from the living room, her tone surprised as she spoke. 

"Dr. Bloom? I had no idea you would be joining us this evening."

Oh.

Damn it.

#

He had to control himself.

The sweet taste of Will's blood lingered on his tongue, his breath wavered just from thinking about it, he wanted to taste more of him, he craved it and that was dangerous. 

His obsession with Will Graham was becoming far more then what he intended, the man's feelings for him became as clear as possible the previous night after their... Moment. Such devotion coming from someone as intricate and singular as Will made him feel powerful, to be able to nurture such high opinions from someone so unique only meant he himself was just as unique and worthy. 

And he had said he felt the same. 

Now, Hannibal wasn't a stranger to lying, but at that moment with Will breathing so heavily upon him he couldn't do it, he knew it wasn't love he was admiting though, love was far to weak for what he felt for the empath. He craved everything about him, he wanted Will at his worst and at his best, he wanted to be the cause of everything that happened to him. 

He craved his body and his mind, his love and his hate, his blood and his flesh.

His life and his death.

Hannibal wanted it all.

He gave Will too much power, he saw that now, he was at the empath's mercy just as the empath was at his. He had to take control of himself back from Will, if he didn't, his and Audra's situation would become compromised and he couldn't have that. 

"Dr. Bloom? I had no idea you would be joining us this evening."

Alana? 

She must have brought Abigail from the facility. 

Hannibal inhaled and exhaled heavily before decreasing the fire of the stove and turning to Will with a calm expression, it almost faltered when he felt the smell of Will's blood still around the man, but he managed a smile and a tilt of his head towards the living room.

"Shall we greet our guests?"

He gave a step and Will took hold of his arm.

"Hannibal, Alana knows about us."

Hannibal just stared.

"I was not aware we were a secret."

"What? No, that's not what I mean." The empath gave a sigh and raised his hand, messing up his hair as he spoke. "I just meant that she knows and doesn't approve."

Oh. 

"Alana is a reasonable woman as well as a friend, I'm sure she doesn't aim to sadden us in any way." With one last smile before turning he finished. "She thinks she knows what's best for us, it's up to us to prove her wrong. Shall we?"

He didn't want to kill Alana after all, at least not unless strictly necessary.

The women were waiting for them at the living room, Audra and Abigail were sitting together at the sofa, his daughter seemed to be showing Abigail the bandage on her leg from where Tobias had stabbed her, since she wore a dress there was no problem to access it. Alana seemed disturbed with it and he could understand, showing Abigail the physical proof of Audra's kidnapping was not good for the girl, it kept her away from the illusion of safety and made her remember of her own traumas and scars, as well as bringing the guilt she felt over Audra's fate to surface.

Of course he knew that was exactly the reason why his daughter was doing it.

As soon as Alana saw them arriving she fixed her look on Will first and then moved to him, her eyes narrowed, her lips became pursed and her whole figure got tense. He had to admit anger suited her.

"Hannibal may I speak with you for a moment. Alone." 

"Alana don't." Will said, his face looked tired already and Hannibal couldn't help the annoyance he felt at seeing Will, so happy a few moments ago, deflate like that.

"Please Hannibal." The woman ignored Will and walked into the kitchen, clearly expecting him to follow. With a sigh Hannibal got close to Abigail to greet her, it would be rude of him not to after all.

"I'll stay here and... Catch up with Abigail." Said the empath. 

After that he went into the kitchen.

"What are you doing Hannibal? A relationship with a patient? Really?" Her voice was avid, but she at least tried to keep it low. She failed of course.

"Will's not my patient, we merely have conversations."

"That doesn't change the fact that your relationship is completely unbalanced, you have advantages over him that make him almost vulnerable to you." 

He tried to be casual when he spoke next, allowing only a bit of coldness to grace his voice.

"Are you sugesting that I would use any knowledge I have about Will against him? After so many years of friendship this is how you still see me?"

"Oh don't do that, you are not a victim here Hannibal."

"And neither is Will, I know you see him as an unstable person, uncapable of decisions that might affect his life in a drastic way and you were right about it to an extent."

That made her frown and cross her arms. "You are trying to change the subject."

"Will's sick Alana, he has Encephalitis and his treatment will begin in only a couple of days."

Her eyes widened.

"Encephalitis?"

"Yes."

"Even so Hannibal, the unbalancement of your relationship..." He couldn't hear that again, so he interrupted her as he turned around and checked on the meat, it was already close to being ready, he had to end this conversation.

"Unless you are implying that I would use any knowledge I have about Will against him, there is no foundation to your concerns."

"It's unethical!"

"He's not my patient, you could refute with immorality, but by whose laws is such a feeling immoral?" He turned back to her and continued. "I know you have Will's well being in your mind, but so do I. We both want this Alana."

"I will not condone this Hannibal."

"Then if your mind is set I believe there is nothing else to say." 

"Excuse me?" 

"I'm sorry Alana, but I'll have to ask you to leave. We were preparing something special for this evening and it cannot be delayed."

He'd never done this to her before and she was transparent enough that he could see her shock at his words, after a second the woman gave a nod, expression tense and with barely concealed anger. Soon she was gone and Hannibal could finally enjoy his evening with his new formed family.

#

Will hadn't antecipated how hard it would be to see Abigail again after knowing that she'd killed Nicholas Boyle, the girl seemed so innocent as she spoke that he still could hardly believe it.

"What do you think they are talking about?"

Should he tell her?

Oh why the hell not?

"It's about my relationship with Hannibal." Abigail turned her big blue eyes to him with a surprised expression on her face.

"You two are together?" After he gave her a nod she spoke again. "Why didn't you tell me sooner?"

"Well, we all have things we don't want others to know." His stare made the implications of what he just said clear, he knew about Boyle and she noticed, her eyes got wider and her breathing just a bit faster. Audra was still quiet, just observing their exchange.

It was with a whisper that Abigail asked. "Are you going to tell Jack?" He just shook his head and watched as relief came down onto the girl, her eyes closing and shoulders getting less tense.

Will was officially helping a murderer, he knew he should feel worse, but he really didn't.

After a while they all saw Alana storming out from the kitchen, getting her coat and leaving, with no goodbyes or anything, a few moments later Hannibal came out of there.

"What happened?"

"Nothing major, we spoke and that was that. The food is ready, shall we set the table?"

After a small moment of silence Audra got up and started walking towards the table, Abigail soon followed and Will got inside the kitchen with Hannibal to help finishing the dish. 

The table was set, the food was served and they were all eating, the easy air had left the place, that was until Audra spoke.

"Wolf Trap is a very isolated place, what do you do to occupy your day Will?"

And just like that an easy conversation had begun, with Will telling them about his dogs and his fishing habits. Audra and Abigail even showed interest in learning a few things from him and that alone made him feel better. 

In general the evening was very pleasant.

**\- TWO WEEKS LATER -**

Will's treatment was already getting results, he felt much more stable, the nightmares had stopped as well as his headaches, he felt in control of himself for the first time in many years. His empathy was not a problem anymore, of course he still wasn't that confortable with it, old habits die hard, but it didn't hurt anymore or strain him. 

Abigail and Audra became more present in his life, spending time with his little pack and with him at his house, sometimes the three of them went fishing, sometimes Hannibal went with them, he and Will became even closer since the beginning of his treatment. Life was good, Will felt like he could finally enjoy those around him without being a danger to them. 

He was currently walking around his property with his dogs when his phone started ringing. The name on the screen made him raise his eyebrows in surprise.

"Jack?"

It's been a long time since he last heard of the man, because of the treatment for the disease Will had to step down from the FBI for a while, which made many of the cases they were working on now unknown to him.

"Will, I know you are still recovering from your disease, but there is a body here that..."

Will let out a heavy sigh. "The Ripper?"

"That's what I think yes, would it be a problem for you to take a look?"

Will thought about what this meant for him, usually what made it hard to look was a mistery to him, now he could atribute it to the encephalitis. It wouldn't be hard to look anymore, he was more in control of himself and, he could admit, curious about what this new perspective would allow him to see at a crime scene.

"I think I can take a look, but that's it Jack, I can't get more involved in the case then that."

"Thanks Will, I'll send you the adress."

"Ok, I'll be over there as fast as I can."

And that was that.

#

It was a cocoon.

A cocoon made of flesh to be more specific.

It was hanging on a tree and there was a body inside. It was a woman, they knew it only because the head could be seen at the top of it as well as her hands trying to claw her way out of the thing, her mouth was opened and, as her head was pending to the side, it looked like she was looking directly to them. Her eyes and mouth were filled with flowers, that hanged together mixing with her hair up until where he thought her waist must be. 

Will exchanged a look with Jack and soon the room was empty.

\- x - x - x -

I take the skin off this woman's body with care, I don't want her to die so quickly nor do I want her to become uncontious because of the pain, every cut I make is precise and surgical. She cannot fight, I made sure of that. 

After the skin is taken care of, I make two cuts on her abdomen for the removal of the organs, the process is slower then usual. It has to be perfect.

I wrap the skin I cut out of her around her, she didn't have enough of it so I had to take it out of other two unwilling donors. I arrange her body with care, this woman is serving a bigger purpose, she is evolving.

Becoming.

This is not about her humiliation, nor about her punishment for being a pig. 

This is a tribute.

I fix the skin together around the body in a way that she won't be able to escape, she is dead by the time I'm finished with it. I take out her eyes to make place for the flowers, a cascade of them is now falling from both her eyes and mouth as I put her on the tree, finally finishing my work.

I know who will see this and I want him to know this is for him. 

My message, signed with a cascade of Sweet Williams.

This is my design.

\- x - x - x -

Panic.

This is the first thing he feels when he comes back to himself. 

The Ripper knows him, this is a present for him. 

"Jack!"

The man returns and, as he takes in Will's appearence, his expression turns to concerned in a second. 

"What have you got Will?"

"It's the Ripper Jack, and he knows I'm investigating his crimes, this is for me."

"What?"

"Those flowers on her mouth, those are Sweet Williams. Jack if he knows about me then other people are in danger..." He was close to having a panic attack, he couldn't even look at the body because of what he represented for him. Jack quickly got hold of his shoulders and shook him a bit.

"Will, calm down. Are you sure this is about you?" 

"It's not like I'm not a public person Jack, Freddie Lounds made sure of that. This is a gift for me, it's all there." He wavered his arm towards the body at the tree, after a few breaths trying to calm himself, the empath looked at Jack and said.

"Do you know which organs he took?" 

"Not yet, we still have to take the body from up there. Will, we can put you under protection..."

"He doesn't want me dead Jack, if he did I would be dead already." The team began to lower the body to the ground and that was his cue to leave. "I'm going Jack, I looked at the body and that's it."

"Will, we have to talk about this, until we are certain of his interest in you, you are a possible victim."

"Just... Not now Jack. I have to go." And with that he left the crime scene. 

He didn't even bother to drive to his own house, he drove directly to the Lecter residence, thoughts running wild inside his head. They were in danger now, because of him. If the Ripper had taken a special interest in Will everyone around him was in danger, someone so egocentric as the Ripper wouldn't want to share his attention with other people. 

He knocked on Hannibal's door with far more strength and panic then he would like to admit, when the man opened the door Will just entered without saying anything, he paced around the living room for a moment until Hannibal approached him.

"What happened?"

"It's the Ripper, he knows me, left me a message at a crime scene." He was still pacing and lost the expression of surprise at Hannibal's face, when he spoke his voice was equally surprised.

"You went to a crime scene? During your treatment?"

"As a favor to Jack." Will finally stopped pacing and got closer to Hannibal, taking hold of the man's shoulders. "Hannibal if I'm a target then you and Audra are targets, I can't have that."

"Will." The finality of his tone made the empath stop and just look at the other man. Lecter raised his hand and put it on Will's cheek and caressed him slightly before closing the distance between their lips and kissing him gently, just a small touch of lips to calm him, he knew but still, it worked. 

When they separated, Hannibal spoke. 

"Let's eat dinner, I've only just finished it, after that we'll speak about this ok?"

"Yeah, ok." Hannibal gave him one last reassuring smile before calling for Audra, the girl came down the stairs and when she saw him a wide smile got hold of her lips. 

"Will! What a pleasant surprise, will you be staying for dinner?"

He couldn't let anything happen to her.

"Yeah I'll be staying, how are you?" It was hard to pretend that everything was ok and maintain a conversation with the girl as they sat on the table, but he managed and soon Hannibal appeared with the food, putting the plates in front of them with his usual embelishment.

"Calf's lung and heart in paprika sauce, a very delightful Hungarian dish. Bon appétit." He sat at the end of the table and they all began to eat, Will had never had neither lung or heart before, it was in the middle of a conversation about that that Will felt his phone vibrating in his pocket. 

"I'm so sorry, I have to take this call it may be about today's situation." He said that throwing Hannibal a subtle look, to which the man nodded.

"There is no problem Will, take the call."

"Hm... Excuse me." He got up and left the dining room, only when he approached the front door he took the call. "Any news?"

"Yeah, the organs he took." 

"Oh, which ones did he take?"

"The lungs and the heart."

Something clicked and Will's heart stopped. 

Curse his imagination, curse his empathy and functional mind, curse him.

"Will?"

"I'll call you later Bev, thanks for the info." And ended the call.

It couldn't be right, it couldn't. As fast as he could he remembered every date, method and organs from every crime scene of the Ripper that he's analized in the past. 

As well as every date of one of Hannibal's famous dinner parties.

It matched, it all fucking matched.

It all made sense, the ease with which he helped Abigail hide the body of Nicholas Boyle in a way that it took so long for the FBI to find, the always present mask he wore around everyone he knew, the darkness Will had seen inside those eyes in their most intimate moments, threatening and solid that he hadn't known at the time to what it was being directed to. Even the possessive way he acted towards Will when they were together. He still remembered the words the man had told him in front of the fireplace so many nights ago.

_The potential to stand by my side as an equal._

That was what he wanted, today's crime scene wasn't a tribute or a message, it was a love letter, to give him the impuse he needed to adapt, evolve and become something new. 

Something equal.

"Will?"

He visibly flinched at that, raising his head he looked at the face of the man he feared, hated and loved with everything he had. 

"Is everything ok? Your food is getting cold."

Yes, his food, his food made with human meat. 

"Sorry, Bev gave me some news I wasn't prepared to hear right now." 

"Nothing serious I hope?"

Stop, please don't be supportive.

He couldn't fight the melancolic smile that came onto his lips as he got closer to the other man, he took a hold of his cheek, caressing those cheekbones he adored so much and gave him a kiss. 

This felt like a goodbye. 

He knew it wasn't, Hannibal wouldn't allow that, but still. 

When he got away he just moved back into the dining room, leaving Hannibal behind. At the dining room Audra gave him a small smile when she saw him and he felt afraid for her, to be the daughter of someone like Hannibal must be hard.

He wondered if she knew or if she was just one of the man's victims in a way.

As Hannibal returned to the dining room and took his place besides Will, he almost laughed to himself. He couldn't believe this was actually happening to him.

He was in love with the Chesapeake Ripper.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WILL KNOWS!  
> And now he has to decide what to do about it. There really isn't much to say without spoilers, just know that the Dark!Will I promised will appear next chapter. 
> 
> Also, here is the link for both dishes they cook in this chapter:  
> İskender kebap: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C4%B0skender_kebap  
> Calf's Lung and Heart in Paprika Sauce: http://bertc.com/subfive/recipes/cow_lung.htm
> 
> Remember that ideas and critics are always welcome. I hope you guys liked it!


	22. Um Novo Jogador

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> There is a new player on the field.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'M SO SORRY I TOOK SO LONG  
> Here is the chapter, this was a hard one to write, I felt like I should've made Will leave Hannibal's house last chapter because I had to deal with him there now without killing him and damn that was hard.  
> I hope this makes sense really lol  
> Good reading! 
> 
> Disclaimer: I own nothing regarding Hannibal.

Hannibal stood in front of his front door as he tried to process what had just happened. For just a moment he was confused, but then the reality of the situation presented itself to him.  


He knows.

Will's empathy have already shown him far more then Hannibal had anticipated at the crime scene from what the man had told him, but it was whatever Beverly had told him at the phone that made him see the truth.

He wasn't shocked of course, it was inevitable and Hannibal knew that, but the fact did not change, Will knows.

He watched as the man walked back into the dining room, the kiss he had been given told him everything he had to know, the empath had the distinct talent to express himself better with actions then with words, and now wasn't different. There was sadness, regret, love, hate and goodbye in that kiss. 

He knew that moment was coming of course, but he didn't expect it to be so soon.

Should he kill him?

That was the first question that came onto his mind. 

No, Will had so much potential to become something great, he couldn't let that go to waste. His decision was even more solidified when he saw the man with his daughter at the dining room, he belonged there and he found he didn't want to kill the man. He had become such a permanent presence in his life that without him things would certainly become, in the very least, dull. 

Besides, Will was his and he took care of what was his.

No, he had to think about something else, kidnapping? No, people would notice... 

"Father?"

"Hm?"

The girl's eyes narrowed slightly, not enough for the empath to notice since he was looking at him at the moment, but enough for Hannibal to see he was being too obvious. He gave a sigh and spoke.

"Forgive me, my mind wandered. Will, your glass is empty, may I?" He extended his hand and watched as the man looked at it, he was trying his best not to show what he was feeling, unfortunately for him both he and his daughter were quite good at reading people, he was certain she had already perceived something was wrong. Will gave him a small nod and a smile and handed the glass over, as to not raise suspicion he looked over at Audra and offered to take hers as well, to which the girl quickly agreed to. He took both glasses and went into the kitchen.

There he filled them with wine.

And a drug on Will's, nothing that could interfere with the remedies he was already taking because of the encephalitis of course, it was only something to make the man sleep.

When he returned he gave Will his glass back, Audra hers and sat down, promptly raising his own in a toast. Hannibal could have laughed at the look on Will's face, the empath was looking suspiciously at his glass, Lecter was almost proud of him, Will's empathy and natural skills of observation had always been remarkable, but now that all of it was returning to its full potency the man became a force to be reckoned with, even so he knew where he was and what was prudent or not.

Not drinking his wine wouldn't be prudent. 

And it was with delight and amusement that Hannibal watched as the man raised his glass in a toast, with one last look from the empath, he drank his wine.

It wasn't long before the man blacked out.

#

''He knows."

Audra looked at him for a second, then turned her look back at the man sleeping on the couch, they had moved Will there a few moments ago. 

"Are you going to kill him?" Said the girl, her arms were crossed in front of her body and her expression was troubled.

"You exclude the possibility of your inclusion in that action, wouldn't you kill him?" 

That question was met with silence at first, the girl got closer to the couch and sat on its end, gently taking Will's curls out of the way to watch his face.

"I would if you asked me to, but I can't say that I want to..." She trailed off for a moment, letting a small smile grace her lips before speaking again. "We got too close didn't we?"

There was no point in lying to her.

"Yes."

"How did he found out?" She was still looking at the empath as she asked this, Hannibal approached his armchair and sat down before speaking.

"He went to a crime scene." That made her turn to him.

"During his treatment?"

"Yes."

"And you didn't anticipate this?" 

Silence.

He let out a sigh and spoke, tone guilty and apologetic.

"I was inspired... It may have been impulsive." The girl closed her eyes and shook her head as she muttered some curse in their mother tongue, Hannibal gave a small sigh and continued. "I don't believe he knows about you, he suspects of course, but we could give him reason not to." That made her look at him again.

"What do you have in mind?"

"Will needs a reason to stay as much as he needs a reason not to expose the reality of our situation, Abigail may not be enough, she is not directly exposed to me, you on the other hand, are."

"You plan to use me as bait then, do you think it will work?" She turned her whole body to him then and supported her elbows on her knees, paying close attention.

"Don't underestimate the extent of Will's feelings for you, he did almost kill Budge before discovering where you were." He stopped to watch as her eyebrows went up at that and then continued. "Will is no stranger to killing, he enjoys it but has trouble accepting that. Making him accept that part of him may take some time... And some sacrifice on your part."

"You mean I'll have to be in danger." He nodded in approval.

"Yes, Will is a righteous man, be kills those whom he believes deserve to die as punishment for their actions, he's a saviour." The girl straightened her posture as he continued.

"We need to give him someone to save." 

"From you?"

"For now yes."

"What if he tries to kills you?" Hannibal smiled slightly at the question before answering.

"He won't."

"How do you know that?"

"He too got too close, Will knows what he has to do, but that is in conflict with what he wants to do. Even if he doesn't accept that part of him, he can't deny it exists."

Audra hummed in response to this and got up, as she got closer to where Hannibal was she spoke.

"You put far too much faith in him... How long until he wakes up?" 

"Not long now."

"Then we should prepare, give me what you gave him." Hannibal smiled at her promptness and got up, getting closer to the girl he raised his right hand to caress her cheek gently before speaking.

"At the first sign of failure, we leave." To which she gave him a smile and a nod, he retributed it and, after kissing her forehead, went to the kitchen to fill her cup with the same drug he used on Will, on a heavier dose of course, he feared his conversation with the empath would be quite long.

This would be interesting to say the least.

#

He groaned as he woke up. 

Opening his eyes may not have been the greatest idea for the whole room was spinning around him, it took a moment but finally Will could get up and sit properly at the couch he was on. As he looked around he noticed he was still in Hannibal's house. 

And alive.

If Lecter went through the trouble of drugging him, then he wasn't blind to the fact that Will knew about him, it was only a matter of time before he would try to kill him. Part of him, that treacherous part that still loved the man, hoped he wouldn't, but he wasn't a fool and trusting Hannibal now was almost impossible.

Still, he hoped and he hated himself for it.

He got up from the couch and merely thought about getting out of the place to warn someone when he saw Audra sitting on the armchair close to the fireplace, head thrown back, eyes closed and lips parted. She was unconscious.

Quickly he got closer to her and felt her pulse, the present heartbeat made him let out a heavy sigh of relief. Why would Hannibal...

"Ah Will, you're finally awake." The sudden voice made him jump a bit and turn around only to see Hannibal standing near the couch he was on before. 

It was so strange, the man still looked the same to him.

This made it all worse.

"Why bother doing this to her? I doubt she's blind to any of this." He asked as he moved so he stood between Hannibal and the girl, this subtle action earned him an amused smile from the other man before he spoke.

"You assume to much Will, any assumption you have of me is unknown to Audra."

"Assumption?"

"Yes, you have come to a conclusion without any base of fact, the only explanation you have are inexplicable jumps your mind is capable of. Shall we sit?" He sat down on the couch after saying that and waited until Will sat down on the other one. 

Hannibal was right, even if Will told Jack about him being the Ripper he had no proof and he doubted the man would leave anything behind, he was meticulous up to the point of being paranoid. With reason of course.

He tried to maintain his calm as he watched the other man, even before he knew Dr. Hannibal Lecter, he and the Ripper had been involved in an intimate way, he knew him as no one did, he was capable of feeling him almost as a caress each time he entered a crime scene of his doing. 

He admired his art even if he didn't like to admit it.

He allowed his eyes to move to Audra and asked himself if the girl truly had nothing to do with this, there was no way she didn't knew a thing about her father being a serial killer, something was missing...

"Will." The firm tone brought him back to the present and he looked back at Lecter, before the man could say anything he spoke.

"She knows, there is no way she doesn't know."

"Isn't there? If what you say is true, she would have been a liability, the more she knew the more vulnerable we would have been." He reajusted himself on the couch and continued.

"I love my daughter Will, if I were what you think I am, I would try to find a way to solve things without inflicting any harm on her." 

Without killing her you mean.

"So you left." It made sense really, it was unlikely that someone as narcisist at Hannibal would kill a part of himself so easily, so leaving before the girl knew anything would be the next logical solution. 

Wait.

"If you were? There are no ifs here Dr. Lecter, I know what you are so don't lie to me."

"After everything that's happened between us Will, you still believe I would be capable of something like that?" His whole expression looked hurt, but Will knew better then to trust him at that moment.

"You can stop right there. You may have to pretend, but I don't." It was fascinating to watch Hannibal's expression morphing into something predatory and satisfied, his voice when he spoke was almost like a purr, enticing and dangerous.

"No, you don't. Not with me."

"I don't expect you to admit anything. You can't. But I prefer sins of omission to outright lies, Dr. Lecter." Will got up from where he was sitting and approached the fireplace, it felt like his heart was about to jump out of his chest, he was scared for both himself and Audra at the moment. 

But he was also extremely excited to finally see the fog drifting away, the myth of the Ripper dicipated, leaving Hannibal Lecter instead. 

The man he loved. 

"Don't lie to me." He muttered at last, it was frustrating how weak his voice sounded to him, almost pleading in a way. Suddenly there was a hand on his neck and Will jumped, quickly turning around and meeting Hannibal's eyes.

Everything would've been so easy if he looked like the monster he was.

"Will you return the courtesy?" The man said. This moment felt intimate enough to leave him almost breathless, Hannibal still had a tight hold on his mask, leaving nothing exposed to the empath no matter how much he looked into those eyes, he gave one step back from the doctor hitting his back on the fireplace in the process. 

He noticed Hannibal's expression getting amused at this. The bastard.

He had to take control of himself, he couldn't turn Hannibal in without evidence and he knew how meticulous the Ripper was, there was no way there WAS any evidence left for him to use against him, besides Lecter had created the perfect character to be whilst living amongst them, Jack would find any accusation against him an absurd to say the least. 

Besides that there were Audra and Abigail to take into consideration. Both girls were vulnerable to the man, he had to stay close to keep them safe and away of the scrutiny of the FBI. 

He had to keep close to find the crack in Hannibal Lecter. 

He had to deceive the man and help Jack to arrest him and for that he'd have to play by the man's rules.

And hope he wouldn't fall to his own darkness on the way. 

It was with that plan in mind that he smiled slightly to the man in front of him, who in turn frowned lightly, if he hadn't been paying attention he surely would've missed it. He moved his body forward and, before he could change his mind, kissed the man in front of him. It was brutal and intense, their lips moved against each other with a savage characteristic, the kiss had been so sudden that Hannibal let out a small gasp followed by a groan at Will's intensity, quickly taking hold of the empath's waist and hair. Will felt like he was loosing himself and quickly ended the kiss, biting Lecter's lower lip with more strength then usual and pulled, only to let go a moment later. 

Hannibal had his eyes half opened as well as his mouth and as if he's forgotten the situation they were in, searched Will's lips again to which the man diverted easily. When he spoke, his voice was rough and low. 

"Why would I lie to you Dr. Lecter? Now that I finally find you interesting?" 

He heard a faint groan coming from the armchair and got away from Hannibal to approach the girl, she would be awake at any moment now. Time to end this conversation. 

"I should go, it's getting late." He turned and saw the man looking back at him, face as stoic as ever before giving him a nod and accompanying him to the front door. After helping Will put on his coat he opened the door to him and spoke only after the empath had left his house. 

"I think you more in control now than you have ever been Will, I wonder how many people are going to get hurt by what you do from now on. I'll give Audra your best after she wakes up. Goodbye, Will." And then closed his door.

Will knew a threat when he heard one and he hated to believe the man would harm his daughter to save himself, but at the moment? He knew nothing about Hannibal Lecter and he would be a fool to put it past him. 

The doctor had made what he wanted from Will quite clear, an equal.

Will would give him that.

But he had to make sure of one thing first. 

#

"Hello Abigail."

"Will?" There was surprise on her face for seeing him here, understandable, usually he avoided coming here alone. He smiled at her and raised his hand, pointing at two chairs for them to sit. After they sat down he spoke.

"How are you?"

"As well as expected, Dr. Bloom made me continue with the support groups which is hell, I don't need to make my life dificult even while I'm awake." 

"Still having nightmares?"

"Yes."

"Hm... You'll learn how to deal with those."

"You mean getting used to?" The sarcastic tone with which she spoke made him give a small laugh and incline his body forward, he extended one of his hands and held hers for a moment before letting go.

"I know what it's like to deal with what you went through. You'll get used to it."

"This wasn't supposed to be my life." 

"We all have to deal with the choices we make Abigail."

The girl made a face at him at that, she was clearly annoyed when she spoke next.

"Well, that's life for you. Why are you here Will? It's not always that you come here."

"I need to know something."

"What?"

"Are you and Audra close?" That made her frown before giving him a small nod. She was suspicious already, he knew the feeling of guilt still hadn't left the girl after all that happened with Tobias, so she must be at least protective of Audra, he had to act with caution.

"It's just something that's been in my mind for a while, when I found her in that basement I noticed she had some old scars besides her present wounds and... Well..."

"You think Hannibal did that to her?" She was incredulous, with wide eyes and raised eyebrows as she stared at him. 

"No, Hannibal would never hurt her I know that." He was scared and surprised with himself, at how easy it was to deceive the girl. She was already nodding at him and slightly pursed lips, she needed a little nudge so he continued to speak.

"She has nightmares too you know?" That made the girl raise her head quickly and look at him with surprise clear on her face, he was lucky he didn't have to fake the sad smile that got hold of his lips before continuing. "Yes, don't tell her I told you that though." He allowed teasing tone to his phrase, which made the girl relax slightly and give him a nod.

"I... She told me what happened to her." 

Finally.

"But it's too personal Will, I couldn't tell you something like that. Why don't you ask her?"

Damn it.

"I don't think bringing the subject would be wise, but there have been moments when I felt I said the wrong thing and she reacted in a negative way. I want to avoid that."

Abigali kept looking at him in doubt, before she could speak he continued.

"Please just... Help me to know her Abigail."

After a quick look at the door the girl finally relented and began to speak, voice low and discrete.

She told him about how Audra tried to learn how to play the theremin, about Hannibal teaching her other languages, of how he would try and teach her how to cook and how she would always fail, she told him about the time Audra finally made a perfect meal to her father and the small celebration he did. He learned about her days in school, of how her favourite season was winter even if Hannibal hated it, of how she and her father would compose music together late at night when they couldn't sleep. She told him even about the castle they both lived in.

It made something clench in his chest to hear any of it.

"She said she never understood why he left her in Lithuania, she said that one day he was there and suddenly he was gone, the only instruction he'd left was with his uncle Robert to look after her."

"Robert?"

"Yes, him and his wife. She has a japanese name... I don't remember it now. Anyway, it was Robert who did those things to her."

"But... Why? I saw some of those scars and they were caused by some serious injuries, why would he do that?" That earned him a small shrug.

"Don't know, perhaps he was crazy. She made a comment once about how obsessed with control he was, his wife wasn't much help either from what she spoke."

"But what exactly did he do to her?"

"I don't know, she only showed me one scar once and that was that, she never explained how he did it."

That changed things, if Hannibal had had any kind of contact with the girl and learned about what his uncle did to her he would have traveled back to Lithuania and killed the man, no questions asked. From what Abigail had told him, Hannibal and Audra had had a very normal life together up until the moment he left. The man had told him the girl was becoming a liability, she was 13 years old when he left, she would've begun to notice certain patterns of his by that age so he had to leave. It made sense. 

"But how did she get here if her uncle was so controling?"

"He's dead, heart attack I think, she said that his wife came to warn her about it and helped her to come here looking for Hannibal."

That was A LOT of information about Audra, he could hardly believe the girl would tell that much about herself to Abigail in such a small time. But they were clearly close, so if the girl had told Abigail that much about herself, did that mean...

"Abigail, does Audra know about Nick?" The mere mention of the name made the girl flinch and look down.

"I... Told her the day Tobias took her." 

Huh?

"Hannibal hadn't told her already?"

"No, she didn't know about it until I told her." 

Could the girl actually be innocent?

Everything Abigail had told him matched with what Hannibal said and to what himself knew about the girl, she could've been lying to Abigail of course, but that was unlikely, Abigail wasn't what Hannibal wanted there was no reason to lie to her. 

He would have to investigate that further, he wanted to believe the girl was innocent, but now was not a good moment to let hope blind him. 

He smiled at Abigail and thanked her, after some small talk he received a call from Jack and excused himself, quickly leaving the room to answer the phone.

"Wait, what is over the truck?"

"The body Will, or at least what's left of it, folks think there was some animal attack but still I want you here."

Well wasn't that interesting.

"I'm on my way Jack." After he ended the call he returned to the room and fuck.

Hannibal was standing in the middle of the room with Audra already sitting on the bed with Abigail, both girls smiling and talking with each other.

"Will, Abigail said you were here, what a lovely coincidence." Said the man to him with a small smirk. Audra turned her head and smiled at him, she waved her hand and quickly ignored him to return to the conversation she was having with Abigail. 

He chuckled lightly at that and got into the room approaching the girls as he did.

"I have to go, Jack just called with a case."

"I told you we should've come earlier father." Said Audra to Hannibal, the man was already approaching Will and the empath had to keep maximum control over himself not to flinch as the man put one of his hands on his waist.

"Do you must go?"

"Yeah, it's quite serious from what Jack spoke. I'm sorry." He covered Hannibal's hand with his own and kept reminding himself of what the man truly was, it was quite easy to forget. He turned his head to the girls and said his goodbyes, giving Abigail a small wink as he did it making the girl smile brightly at him. 

Still smiling Will approached Hannibal and, by force of habit, gave the man a gentle kiss, in the middle of it he realized what he'd done and pulled back. The doctor's face was pleased and smug as he approached the empath again and slightly moved his head, making the tip of their noses touch each other before saying with a low voice.

"I'll see you later dear Will." 

"Sure..." With that he gave a few steps back and went out of the room, from the outside he heard Abigail's voice speaking.

"Are they always like that?"

"You have no idea." Answered Audra, soon to be followed by Hannibal's voice asking about Abigail's wellbeing.

As he walked away and outside of the facility Will realized for the first time just how difficult this small game he and Hannibal were playing was. 

He was beginning to doubt he would win.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I HAD TO USE THE IMPULSIVE THING IT WAS TOO FUNNY NOT TO  
> In this chapter Will's darkness was explored a bit, he's more manipulative in here, but as you read Randall Tier is coming next chapter so yeah. Stuff will happen.  
> I hopt you guys liked it, any critics or ideas are super welcome.  
> Thanks for reading!


	23. O Despertar

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Randall Tier comes to Wolf Trap to say hello, Will is not amused and Hannibal can barely keep up with him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WHO IS EXCITED FOR THE EPISODE TOMORROW?? HANNIGRAM WILL FINALLY MEET AND OMG I'M NOT READY
> 
> Ok, So this chapter was actually one of the best in my opinion, it was sooo good to write this one at the sound and inspiration of Lacrimosa - Mozart. It was great really.  
> I hope you guys like it! Good reading!
> 
> TRANSLATIONS:  
> Ei! Suolai, žiūri į mane! = Hey! Scum, look at me!
> 
> Disclaimer: I own nothing, only Audra.

"No guts, no glory." 

Zeller's amused voice could be heard from over the truck as the man examined the crime scene, Price was over there with him and Will let out a snort as he heard the man's reply.

"There are guts. They're over there." 

"Boys, behave we are at a crime scene."

"Yes mother." Came Zeller's sarcastic reply.

Will looked at Beverly as she shook her head at the men, she'd just got down from the top of the truck and approached the empath and Jack, the two of them were close to the truck watching as the team worked on top of it. As she walked he noticed the snow around her feet and spoke.

"It snowed all night, there are no tracks. You sure it was an animal?" It was Zeller who responded him.

"Severance of the jugular and carotids, esophagus destroyed. The bite almost severed his head." 

"Evisceration was performed by large, non-retractable claws, so we're looking at a wolf or a bear." Complemented Price after a moment, Will walked around the truck as he listened to them, he got so distracted for a moment that he gave a small jump when he felt a hand on his shoulder, quickly turning and seeing Beverly behind him with a slightly worried expression on her face.

"Are you alright? I told Jack that he needed to back the hell off while you were in treatment but he wouldn't listen." Will let out a small laugh and replied with an amused tone.

"I doubt those were the words you used against him."

"Well you would be surprised." Her teasing tone died when she spoke next. "But seriously are you ok? I doubt this whole freak show is good for you." 

"I'm ok thanks Bev, I've already told Jack that at the first sign of pain I would leave."

It was refreshing to see someone get worried about him without any ulterior motive, Beverly had that effect on him, she was true and didn't see him as a victim of circumstance like Alana would have. The woman had always worried about him, but for all the wrong reasons.

A sudden image of her speaking against his and Hannibal's relationship came into his mind.

Well... Not all the wrong reasons.

Oh if only she knew how right she had been.

"I'll hold you to that." Said the woman in front of him, bringing him back into the present. With a small nod she left to join the other two members of her team on top of the truck. The next one to join him was Jack, expression grim and annoyed, both because of the crime scene and the cold.

"Whatever it was, it wasn't afraid of humans. Not anymore." Said him, Will hummed lowly as he looked at the upper part of the body on the cab of the truck, after a moment he spoke.

"Wolves and bears don't eat where they kill. They would've dragged him off."

Beverly's loud voice was heard right after he said that.

"It could've gone mad, there have been random attacks where the animal doesn't eat any part of the victim." Zeller's voice came right after hers.

"There was no eating here. We found just about everything, viscera was exposed, belly was laid open, but no sign of gnawing or rutting."

"Found the same wound patterns on recent livestock mutilations in the area. Evisceration, dismemberment, yet everything accounted for." 

After Price finished talking Will turned to Jack and spoke, his tone was tired, he was at one step of getting on his car and driving home, there was far more pressing issues for him to solve.

As in the Ripper.

"Since when does the FBI get involved in animal attacks, Jack?"

"When somebody's holding the leash of whatever's doing the attacking."

"Well, if that's the case, then the livestock mutilations... That was practice."

After a moment watching the crime scene he complemented.

"He's urbanizing his animal, moving closer to the city, adapting it to bigger prey." 

He was already getting lost on what could've happened at the place, it was the sudden pain on his head that made him divert his eyes from it and breath in deeply. Jack noticed and put one of his hands oh Will's shoulder.

"You ok?"

"Yeah, I'm on my limit though." To which Jack nodded and replied.

"We'll take over from here, go and get some rest Will." That surprised him, but Will wasn't one to lose a chance like this, he gave Jack a small nod and promptly went into his car to go home. 

He just wanted his dogs and some sleep.

#

Days passed and Will hadn't seen neither Jack, Abigail or even the Lecters. Since his headache on the animal attack crime scene Jack hadn't called him so he had no idea about how far into the investigation the FBI actually was, he theorized that Crawford had looked for help in another place other then him to continue with the profile of the possible killer.

His best bet would be Dr. Hannibal Lecter.

Will had given himself these days of solitude to STOP thinking about Hannibal, he could feel that situation getting to him and he didn't want to fall prey to himself so easily, therefore it was only him and his dogs, currently walking around the fields. The dogs were running around playing with each other as Will collected materials for his baits where he could find them. 

After a while he gave a loud whistle and guided the small pack back to his house. They were close enough to see it when Will saw an all too familiar Bentley leaving the property, dread filled him as he thought of all the possible reasons Hannibal would have to go to his house without him in it so he ran towards the place. The dogs went along but soon outrunned him and got there first, finally close enough Will noticed two figures, one was watching inside his house from a window and the other was walking around it, the dogs weren't barking so they weren't strangers which confused him.

"WILL? ARE YOU THERE?"

Abigail?

"I'm here." He watched as the girl jumped and turned to him, she smiled and loudly spoke.

"HE'S HERE."

From the other side of his house Audra appeared frowning, as soon as she saw him though, the girl's face relaxed and she approached them.

What was happening?

"Hm... What?" Both girls looked at him strangely before Abigail spoke.

"It's Friday."

His expression must have told them that he still had no clue for Audra spoke with a tired tone, but still as polite and polished as ever.

"It's fishing day." Said her as she crossed her arms.

Oh.

He had actually forgotten that. 

When his treatment began, Hannibal had acquired the custom of taking the girls to his house so that they would fish together at least twice in a month, always on a Friday. The girls would learn from him and Hannibal would stay on his house, usually reading, preparing the kitchen for them to cook whatever they caught during the day or, impressive enough, just hanging out with his dogs. 

He had to admit, he had missed this.

The fact that Hannibal wouldn't be staying shouldn't be bothering him so much but he was trying to ignore that right now.

"Sure, let me just... Let's get our things." He opened the door and was soon followed by seven dogs and two young girls. 

How is this his life? 

"I'll go get our stuff." Said Abigail to Audra as she got up the stairs, leaving them alone. The silence was present for a while, but was quickly broken by the girl as she approached him.

"Will... May I ask something?" 

"Sure."

"Is everything alright with you and father?" That made him stop what he was doing and look at her.

"Why? Did he say something?"

"No, he's far too discreet for that, but I've noticed he's more secluded, almost... Sad." She frowned as she looked down on the floor, it soon disappeared when she looked back at him, he let out a heavy sigh and got closer to the girl. 

"Everything is fine, that is unless he has some surprise prepared for me?" It was enough of a hint for him to search for a reaction on her face, she gave him nothing, there was not even a micro expression for him to see and her eyes remained the usual blank wall staring back at him, slowly shaking her head.

That worried him, why would she need such tight protection on herself around him if there was nothing to hide? 

"Here are the things." Abigail returned, they all prepared the baits they were going to use and went out of the house , the walk towards the icy river was filled with conversations and laughter, it was so easy for him to forget about all of his problems. 

Well, almost.

Everytime Audra looked at him he saw Hannibal's eyes, his cheekbones and suddenly everything went back onto him like a bucket of cold water. 

If he was diverting his eyes from the girl it wasn't without cause.

When they arrived on the spot a small whole was opened in the ice and they began their fishing.

"This is good, father has been so occupied lately... It's good to relax."

"What's he been up to?" Abigail asked before he could've said something. 

"Jack called him to help with a case, apparently their prime suspect was an old patient of father's, a man who thought he was an animal I believe." Will watched as the girl reajusted her position after saying that.

So the prime suspect of all those killings was Hannibal's ex-patient. He would like to say that we was surprised, but no. Will was familiar with the extends to which Dr. Lecter's manipulation was able to go, the possibility of Hannibal convincing comeone to kill was high and he couldn't ignore that.

"Ex-patient you said?" Asked him to the girl to which she nodded. 

"Yes, when he spoke about it with me he said that the man was fine when he left his care, hence his confusion on the case." 

Hannibal wouldn't miss if someone was lying to him, he could be a monster, but he always searched for perfection in everything that he did and he was an excelent psychiatrist all things considered. If Hannibal said that the man was fine then he was fine. 

Only that man was now killing. 

Hannibal had lied, he had allowed a killer to remain amongst the sheep knowing what would happen, the moment in time when it happened was irrelevant, he knew the man would ressurge again and follow his instincts.

Hannibal had been curious about him...

He was experimenting on people, on his patients. 

"I caught one!" Said Abigail interrupting his line of thought, he watched as she pulled the fish out of the water, a wide smile on her face as she looked at him, he smiled back and congratulated her, the next hours were spent with some jokes and enough conversation to make Will put aside his thoughts on Hannibal Lecter.

It was dark when they arrived at Will's house, Abigail settled in with the dogs at the living room after turning the heater on and Audra accompanied him into the kitchen to deal with the fish, there was a comfortable quiet in the place until his dogs started barking.

All of them went to the front door, angrily barking at something outside. Will let what he was doing alone and went to look through the window. There wasn't much to be seen, but he could feel there was something wrong. 

"Audra, go to the living room with Abigail and stay there until I return." The girl frowned a bit as she nodded at him but followed his instructions anyway, as quickly as he could he got his shotgun from the cupboard, signaled to his dogs to stay still and opened the door. 

Buster ran out.

"Buster!" He hissed to the dog, but he was long gone leaving only his tracks on the snow. 

Will followed of course.

It was dark and cold outside, Will felt his heart beating fast in his chest as he followed Buster's track on the snow, he could hear him barking in the distance until it became a high pitched whine. Now there was only silence and dread filled him.

_No, no, no, no, no, no._

He accelerated his pace and finally saw the small body lying on the snow, as he got close he saw the blood on the dog and anger filled him, with as much care as he could he got hold of him, got up and looked around. 

It was as if all the music and sound around him just stopped, only the beating of his heart and Buster's low whines making a sound, he felt alone and unprotected. There were eyes on him he could feel that, someone was watching him, it felt calculated and savage like an animal.

He was being hunted.

If he had been alone he might have done something different, but he had Buster under his arm and two girls alone in his house, so he ran back to it as fast as he could. He knew that running could make it worse, only prey ran, but he had no choice. As soon as he got inside the house he heard the girls gasping as they saw the state of the dog, he locked the door and let the Buster down close to them, Abigail quickly approached him to check on his leg while Audra approached him.

"Will..." 

"Audra, get Abigail and go upstairs." His voice was cold, the anger he felt earlier had increased and now there was only murder on his head, when he noticed the girl hadn't moved yet he looked at her, it was almost funny the way she gave one step back before he spoke again. "Go." 

Without saying another word the girl moved fast towards Abigail, but it was late already.

It felt like a slow motion movie really.

The window broke and a huge body was coming through it, the surprised screams Abigail and Audra let out united with the sounds the glass shards made when they touched the ground around them like different instruments on a symphony as they created the unexpected macabre soundtrack for this moment. The body collided with Will, making him drop his gun, he only lost one second trying to reach for it before a metal skull approached his face, he threw his hands forward to divert it and by doing it, caught the eyes of the man inside this strange suit.

There wasn't rage in those eyes, there wasn't even a purpose there, this was violence for its own sake, innocent in its nature. This was no man killing just for the sake of killing, this was an animal staring back at him. 

An animal trapped inside the body of a man. 

This was Hannibal's patient.

The fact that he knew where Will's house was meant only one thing, Hannibal had sent him here. He knew the girls would be here and he still sent the man after him, he let Abigail be in danger, Audra, him and his dogs. 

His train of thought was interrupted by the pain he felt as claws digged on his side. It all suddenly stopped when something collided with the man's head, Will looked up and saw Abigail getting hold of whatever she could to throw at his attacker.

"Ei! Suolai, žiūri į mane!" Audra's scream distracted the man on top of him for enough time for him to take a breath. Only it made him go towards them. 

He didn't think, he just caught the man's torso and turned him in a way that now he was the one sitting on top of him, getting hold of the metal skull and twisting it open, Will expected to see a nameless face staring back at him, but what he saw instead was Hannibal. That infuriating face who dared to risk the life of those he held most dear smiling up at him, taunting. 

His fist traveled towards Hannibal's face, creating music as it collided with the air around it, each time his hand collided with that face he felt the bones breaking, the blood embracing his skin and clinging to him as he pulled his fist back, only to bring it down again, the sweet sound it made as it collided with the air intensified at each time he brought it down, making him increase the speed of his hits, the notes morphed inside his mind until music filled his every thought, the longing choir of Lacrimosa accompanying him as he broke each and every bone in that face. 

It began to hurt his hand, but he couldn't let the music stop in its middle, it had to end. 

It was only when the last notes of the music ended and silence filled his mind that he stopped and looked down, it wasn't Hannibal anymore, just the nameless face he'd expected from the start. The man now almost unrecognizable stared at the ceiling with now lifeless eyes, whatever animal resided in those eyes left him and now only the pitiful human remained. 

Hannibal eats his victims, he cooks them not out of respect as the ancient would do, but out of humiliation, he gave them a bigger purpose by keeping him alive as food. He wasn't sure even if Lecter saw what he did as cannibalism, he doubted the man would consider any of his victims an equal.

Will looked at the man under him and thought if he could be considered his equal, two animals attacking one another and fighting to the death. 

No. 

They weren't equals.

Will wasn't a prey like this man under him, who had fallen to slavery so easily by his own mind, trapped inside his own insanity.

Will wasn't insane, he knew exactly what he was and what he was doing. 

He was the winner. 

He was the predator in this pitiful world of prey.

With that thought on his mind he raised his own injured hand to his lips and licked the blood on it as he closed his eyes, he wouldn't humiliate this man, he would help him to become in death what he couldn't possibly be in life. He could see it already, the beast with the face of a man...

Heavy and panicked breathing interrupted his thoughts, he turned his head quickly towards it and saw the girls together on the corner of the room, Abigail was standing still, wide eyes looking forward as her hand shook lightly in front of her, there were no tears on her face, just pure shock. Audra was standing in front of her arms wide as if she had been using her own body to protect the other girl, he noticed her face wasn't as shocked as Abigail's, sure her eyes were wide and her breathing was heavy but there was something... Appreciative in her eyes, pleased.

Slowly he got up from where he was and approached them, Audra slowly lowed her arms as she stared at him, almost in awe. One more step and the girl closed the distance between them and enveloped him in a hug, burying her head on his chest. He retributed it with a small smile before speking in a low and gentle voice.

"You'll get blood on your clothes."

"I can change them later." Replied the girl.

He raised his head when he felt a tentative hand on his shoulder, it was Abigail. The girl had calmed down a bit, but was still shaking. She gave him a small smile and he raised his left arm to her inviting her in, she quickly accepted and hugged him as well, both girls smaller then Will in a way that made it possible for him to rest his chin on top of their heads. 

They shared this moment of peace for a few minutes before Will spoke.

"I want you two to go upstairs, take a shower and change." After he said that Abigail spoke, voice trembling slightly.

"What about... Him?" Said her as she pointed at the body.

"I'll take care of that, just go ok?" They both gave him a nod and went. 

He looked at them as they got up the stairs and turned his eyes to the body. 

He had a gift for Dr. Lecter.

#

The soft sound of the Waltz of the Flowers filled his house. 

Hannibal was sitting comfortably on his armchair by the fireplace, the sound of the fire combined with the music made his reading an incredibly calming experience. He was taking a sip of his wine when he heard the knocking on his door. 

With a heavy sigh he got up from where he was sitting and went to it, as soon as he opened the door a foot collided with his chest, making him fall on his back. In only a moment Will was stradling him, taking a hold of his tie and pulling him up just enough to punch him with strength at least twice before letting him go. When Hannibal looked up he saw the other man moving his hand loosely in front of him. 

"I should've avoided the cheekbones." He said with amusement right before lowering his face to Hannibal's and speaking lowly almost in a growl close to his ear.

"You'll never endanger their lives again." 

Oh so this is what this was about.

He had been wondering when Randall would go after the empath, it was taking more time then he would've liked, but he hadn't known it would be today. 

Telling that to the man on top of him wouldn't make any difference.

"They were never in danger, they were with you weren't they?" Will hummed at that, slowly taking hold of Hannibal's wrists and raising them over his head, holding them there while he spoke.

"Don't gamble with their lives again."

"I had faith in you Will, I always have." Lecter had given up looking into the other man's eyes and settled with staring at the ceiling, he could smell the blood on Will's neck like this. He allowed his eyes to close and a lazy smile spread over his lips as he imagined what might have happened in the empath's house. 

He would have to speak with Audra later. 

Teeth made contact with his neck soon followed by a tongue, Hannibal let out a humming noise of his own before asking, voice slightly rough.

"Where are the girls?"

"At the facility, they are both dealing with what happened." His hold on Hannibal's wrists got slightly stronger before the man continued. "I have brought something for you."

Without another word the man got up from where he was and left the house, Hannibal used this small time to get up and try to compose himself, when the empath returned it was with a big black bag, undoubtedly the body of Randall Tier lay inside. 

Hannibal's almost lost his breath when he saw it.

The empath let the body fall on the table of the dining room and uncovered it, exposing the man's almost destroyed face.

"I brought you dinner Dr. Lecter."

This was everything that Hannibal wanted and more, it had to be a trap, he couldn't believe Will would let himself fall to his darkness so quickly but... The intense heat he felt spreading over himself made him put those thoughts aside, just for the moment. 

"I'm afraid you caught me unprepared dear Will, might I invite you to dinner tomorrow?" The empath gave him a small smile and got closer to him, slowly he caressed Hannibal's cut cheekbone and approached his face, taking a bite of the doctor's lower lip, the bite got far too strong up to the point of splitting Hannibal's lip. He got away before Lecter could get a hold of him. 

"That one was for Buster." 

The dog? 

Hannibal watched confused as Will walked out of the dining room, soon he followed the man.

"I'll see you tomorrow then." The man walked towards the door and stopped before leaving. "I'll bring Audra here in a few moments, if I were you I'd get rid of that." And left.

Now there was a body on his dining table, a cut on his cheekbone and on his lower lip, undoubtedly a bruise on his chest and his hardening sex in his pants.

So much had happened so quickly, he could barely keep up.

After a sigh he decided that the corpse should be dealt with first.

#

Audra arrived later that night, he noticed her clothes had changed and her hair was damp. Will had been thorough even with the girls. He felt pride swelling his chest at that. 

He and his daughter were sitting by the fireplace together, enjoying a glass of wine each when he spoke.

"How would you describe Will after what happened tonight Audra?"

The girl had a smile on her face when she turned to him and spoke almost breathlessly.

"Transcendental."

Hannibal smiled, he would've said the same had he been there, for Will would've been nothing less then that. As he raised his glass to the girl in a toast, Hannibal tried to remember the description Audra had given him of what happened so that he could draw it later, with her present to correct him of course.

He wanted to preserve this moment.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That scene where Will killed Tier was a wild trip to write, because DARK WILL, it had to maintain Will's personality and poetic nature and ugh it was great to write that.  
> I hope you guys liked it, any thought, idea and critics are welcome.  
> Thanks for reading!


	24. Movendo as Peças

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Will tries to gain Hannibal's trust, Hannibal and Audra compose some music, there is a woman inside a horse and Audra gets angry.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Digestivo killed me. I don't even have anything else to say, I'm not ok just... That's it. 
> 
> ANYWAYS you may have realize that I inverted the timeline and that's right, the reason behind that is because I think Will demonstrates his dark side far more in this murder's timeline then in any other moment, especially because of that scene when Hanni grabs his neck and stuff, so yeah. 
> 
> Also please don't feel worried, this will have a happy ending ok? 
> 
> TRANSLATIONS!  
> Puikus, tėvas = Excellent, father.  
> Tėvas = Father.  
> Mylimasis = Beloved.
> 
> Disclaimer: I own nothing, only Audra.

Will was standing in the middle of his living room looking at the blood and the broken glass shards scattered over the floor when his anger finally left him. 

What has he done?

He could argue self defense but that was true only until a point. The man under him was still alive when he became unconscious and stopped fighting back, still Will kept going, any chance that man had had, had been destroyed by him as he tore the life away from him needlessly. 

And after that when he'd had the chance to call Jack and explain everything, that he'd had to protect the girls and with the armour the man had become far more powerful then him, hence the excessive use of force, he didn't. He chose to give Hannibal the body. 

Why had he done that? 

The worse is that he knew.

The anger he'd felt made him want to threaten Hannibal with the body, to show the man just what he was capable of doing if he chose to put the girls in danger again, it was a message as much as it was his doom for he was sure that whatever message the doctor perceived in his little delivery it wasn't a threatening one. 

As he thought about Hannibal's response to what he'd done he remembered seeing surprise, admiration, lust and smugness in his face. 

Lecter thought Will had finally lost himself to his darkness. 

As he kneeled on the floor to clean it he realized that yes he had, but he was still in control of himself and still knew his objective, he could still use this to his advantage. Hannibal would be more susceptible to him, he would be more sincere and less cautious, that meant he would be more prone to make a mistake by then. 

He wondered if it wasn't time to bring Jack into this.

#

"No, his head was turned down a bit, like this." Audra mimicked the action for him as he nodded and corrected his drawing, Hannibal was sitting by his desk drawing the events of last night as best as he could with Audra there to correct him when needed. 

"And how was Abigail during the event?" Asked him to his daughter as the pencil caressed the paper gently to create Will's lovely jaw.

"In shock at first, then she just grabbed anything she could find and started throwing it at Randall, she was actually quite brave." Said Audra as she approached the desk to see what he had done. "Puikus, tėvas." With that she gave a kiss on his cheek and left his side. 

"Will gave me Randall's body." That made the girl stop and look at him, her whole face screamed suspicion. 

"What is he planning?"

"I have no knowledge of anything he might be trying in the future, though I suspect he might try to involve Jack into this." He watched as Audra's face returned to her usual stoic expression before continuing." He finally realized he may need someone holding his leash, he needs to feel that he's doing the right thing, to deceive himself for the moment." At the lack of response he gave a small sigh and spoke again.

"What is on your mind?"

Audra walked towards the window and looked outside. 

"We should leave." 

"Wouldn't that arouse their suspicion my dear?" He stopped drawing so he could look at her, the girl had turned and now stared at him with a slight worried expression on her face, her voice when she spoke was controlled but he could still hear the slight tremor that took it.

"Will still hasn't said anything to Jack, else the FBI would already be at our doorstep. We could go now." Hannibal watched her for a second before rising up and walking towards her, she turned towards the window again as he stood besides her. 

"Do you not trust me in this?"

"No." 

He chuckled at how fast she answered that, getting a smile out of the girl. She looked at him and raised an eyebrow waiting for him to continue, but he couldn't. The light coming from the window made contact with Audra's face, molding it in a way that made her look so much like her mother that he got caught off guard. 

For a small second he wanted to kill her. 

She had always looked more like Daina then himself, with her curly black hair, slightly thicker lips and delicate small nose. With time he got used to it, happy that whatever resided inside Daina's mind hadn't passed on to Audra's.

Then the girl smiled.

That was _his_ predatory smile, _his_ reddish eyes staring back at him, his cheekbones that molded her angular face. It was _his_ abilities and knowledge that traveled inside her thoughts. 

She was his certainty of immortality and his biggest accomplishment, but most importantly she was his daughter, no matter how much alike to Daina she was.

And he wouldn't risk her again.

"Audra." His tone must have changed for the teasing expression on her face left in a second, she turned her body to him fully and frowned lightly. He smiled, raised his hand and gently caressed her face as he spoke. 

"I believe... We have reached the point of no return mylimasis." Her eyes widened minimally and he continued.

"I won't lie, whatever happens from now on will only put you in danger, Will is unpredictable at this point and I must keep you safe."

"You won't give up on him." This wasn't a question, she knew how much Will meant to him, Hannibal didn't just want the empath, he needed him. Now that he knew of his existence he feared that, without him, he would leave a trail of corpses wherever he went only out of sheer frustration at not finding someone as intricate as his dear empath. 

"I won't, which is why I give you a choice. You can leave or you can stay, know that staying means you'll face whatever consequence comes with our actions." He finished his little speech with a sigh and closed eyes, he wouldn't begrudge her choice either way of course even if it meant the rest of their lives in prison or worse.

In Chilton's care. 

A small shudder went up his back at this thought, he would prefer that she left, that way she would remain free and that stubborn part of him in her would be free with her. 

His reddish eyes would still be able to see Florence once more.

His cheekbones would still be able feel the cold wind of Lithuania again.

His smile would still be able to charm everyone that beheld it.

His abilities and knowledge would still exist.

All of this through her.

She must remain free at all costs, he would see to that no matter what.

His thoughts were interrupted when he felt her small hand on his cheek, he opened his eyes and looked at the girl in front of him, there was pain in her eyes that no one so young should ever feel, but with it a certainty that made him hold his breath as he waited for her answer.

"I know what it's like to be left behind tėvas." She raised her head towards him and gave him her customary kiss on his cheek before stepping back and speaking. "I'm staying."

There was a feeling taking hold of him, an agony that he'd only been able to feel before Mischa died, the kind of sadness and anguish that only love provides. He wished she hadn't said that, he wished she had left in the morning to Italy to see his favourite painting at the Galleria degli Uffizi, to walk where he walked in the past, to grow...

"Tėvas."

Her voice brought him back to the present. 

"Do you remember what we used to do when we couldn't sleep?" The memory made Hannibal smile lightly at her before speaking, voice never betraying how he truly felt.

"We used to compose together." Now the girl gave him a minimalist smile of her own as she nodded, then she spoke with her voice slightly wavering.

"Shall we compose then father?" He took a second just to look at her, she had grown so much... Hannibal closed his eyes and touched his forehead to hers as he spoke. 

"Of course, mylimasis."

He was anguished that she wouldn't be gone and safe. 

But there were no words to describe how happy he felt that she would be staying.

#

"Jack."

"Will, good you're here already, there is a case."

"Jack I need to speak with you." Will stood in the middle of Crawford's office as he spoke that, Jack only passed quickly by him barking out orders to an agent that appeared outside, Will promptly followed. When the man was done and the other agent gone the empath finally spoke.

"It's about the Ripper." 

That did the trick.

Jack stopped and turned to him with a heavy frown on his face, his voice when he spoke was cautious and barely controlled. 

"You got something new on him?"

This was the moment, now he had to decide if he would risk Jack's life to catch Hannibal.

Now was his point of no return.

As he looked at Jack's face in those small seconds he thought about what would happen if the man became involved somehow, they would work as if this was an infiltration mission, Will would seduce Hannibal and try to find evidence to incriminate him, he would get it and Hannibal would go to prison. That left Audra alone and he couldn't imagine a scenario where she would forgive him for betraying her father, innocent or not. 

He would still have Abigail at least.

But that was the ideal, the perfect utopian universe.

Hannibal was clever, Will doubted that the man had only just started killing, he had experience and was meticulous to the point of leaving no evidence at all, he would quickly catch up on Will's plans and at some point something would go wrong. Will didn't even know if Audra was innocent, she could be Lecter's eyes and ears whenever the man was absent for all he knew and if she was indeed guilty then they would be in smaller number, someone like Hannibal Lecter was hard enough to deal with, but two people like that? Impossible.

Jack would end up dead, his wife would die alone and suffering from both her cancer and the loss of her husband. He would probably die too, he doubted Hannibal would enjoy betrayal especially from Will, he knew the man had shown his too much already, the only punishment worthy of betraying such trust would be his death.

Or his ultimate suffering.

Abigail would become a target. 

Would she though? Did she know about Lecter? Hannibal hid a body for her, that was a strong enough tip about the man for her to at least suspect something. 

Apparently he could trust no one, not even himself because no matter how terrible Hannibal's crimes were, there was a part of him that wanted nothing more then to protect and forgive the man, for he loved him with everything he had. He tried to make that part dormant, but it became louder and louder with each day that passed, and as he looked at Jack right now it was almost impossible to contain it.

In the end it was the part that was afraid of risking his friend's life that he chose to listen.

Almost out of spite.

He had to think fast about what to say to Jack now and it was easier then he would've liked to lie to the man.

"Not me, Hannibal. He noticed something in the last kill that he thought might be useful, but he needs a copy of some of our files." Jack nodded and smiled lightly at him before speaking.

"I'll see what I can do, some good news at least." The agent got closer to him and put one hand on his shoulder still smiling, Will gave the man one of his usual awkward smiles in return and watched as Jack chuckled slightly at it. 

"Well, we have to go now, someone found a body inside a horse. I don't even know anymore." Crawford shrugged and turned to walk away. "You coming?"

"Yeah, I just need to call Hannibal and tell him about the files."

"Ok, see you at the crime scene." With that he left. Will gave a small sigh and turned to the opposite direction already getting hold of his phone and dialing Lecter's number, he still didn't know if this was the right choice to be made, if betraying Hannibal in the future would be worth it. As he waited he deliberated if he should call Jack back and tell him the truth or not, then the doctor picked up the phone and he listened to his voice.

"Will?" 

That dark part of him had no doubt anymore, hearing that low tone covered with that light accent of his was all that was needed to make him feel the certainty he needed, he knew that Hannibal might not be the right choice, but he was the one Will truly wanted to make. 

But he couldn't. 

Hannibal was a killer and he couldn't be allowed to live amongst innocent people.

But... Wasn't he one too? 

He decided to step away from that line of thought, he was fighting to catch Hannibal, to make him answer for his crimes. He wasn't the bad guy in this.

Not yet.

"Hannibal I... Is that Audra playing the violin?" He could hear it through the phone, it was a melody unknown to him, but beautiful none the less.

"Indeed it is." Said the man with an amused tone, when he said nothing else Will spoke.

"I'm calling to say that I won't be able to go to your house tonight for dinner, there is a body here and Jack needs me." 

There was a small silence for a few seconds before Lecter spoke.

"It's fine Will, by luck I hadn't prepared anything yet. Is there anything else?" 

"Yes, the files you wanted about the Ripper."

"... Files?" Will almost laughed at the way the doctor said this, slowly and obviously confused, before he continued.

"Yes, I told Jack about the detail you noticed from the last crime scene and he agreed to give you some of the files on the Ripper to help." There was silence again and then he heard.

"Will..." Almost in a whisper.

"I'll have to be there though since those belong to the FBI etc. etc."

"I... Of course." There was still confusion there, perhaps even suspicion. Doubt?

"I have to go now, Jack's waiting."

"Goodbye Will." 

And he ended the call feeling quite pleased with himself, he knew the doctor still couldn't trust him fully, but he would give the man several reasons to. With a small smile he turned back towards the direction Jack had walked out earlier and began to walk, only to be interrupted by a voice calling his name.

"Will, wait!" 

It was Alana, the woman hurrying to catch up with him before he went away. The way her hair bounced around when she moved may have made him lose his breath at some point, but not now. If felt strange not to feel affected by her anymore.

"Hello." Was all he said to the woman, it's been so long since they talked, the last time he saw her they were at Hannibal's house along with Abigail and Audra as she angrily walked out of the front door.

"Look Will, I... I haven't had the time to see you after your treatment began and..."

"You avoided me." She stared at him slightly surprised at the rude interruption before getting hold of her facial expression, only then she continued.

"By now there must have been improvement on you, I was wondering about your thoughts about the... FBI and you still helping on their cases." She pursed her lips slightly after saying this and blinked twice, a custom he noticed she had when her frustration became a little bit too much.

"Yes I have, Jack is waiting for me at a crime scene right now so..." He gave her a nod and turned to leave, three steps later and Alana spoke again.

"What about Hannibal?" That made him stop and turn again.

"What about him?"

"Have your treatment changed your perception of him in any way?" 

Will humored her and thought about everything he knew about Hannibal before and after the disease, from stranger to friend, from friend to lover, from lover to monster and finally from monster to equal.

He gave a small chuckle and opened his eyes to look at the woman in front of him. 

"Absolutely." With a small nod to her he finally managed to turn and walk towards the exit of the building. 

#

"This kind of mutilation often presents as cult activity." Said Jack at the crime scene.

Some cult that was.

The woman was lying on a sheet of plastic put there by the forensics team, Zeller was kneeling by her body unpacking his kit to examine her further, Price was standing over the horse taking photographs of the sutures and incisions made on its belly and trying not to hit Beverly as she took some samples from the horse and examined the abdominal cavity. As Price took the photos he spoke distractedly.

"When an animal's sacrificed, it's presumed the power of the beast will be psychically transported to whoever's offering up the goods." Will shook his head before speaking.

"Which is why sacrificial animals should be healthy, without any defects. This horse was dying."

"Its womb was more or less intact at least." Will raised one of his eyebrows at that before turning his attention back at the scene. As he looked at this woman's face he could hear Jack taking everyone out of the place for him to do his thing. 

\- x - x - x -

I don't want you to see me. I don't want you to see what I do. I want to calm you, comfort you. I slide cloth hoods over the horses' heads and stroke their necks, they are good and pure, they don't deserve any cruel treatment from him.

Besides, there's so much comfort in darkness. 

I take the chosen horse out of its stall and lead it to its new resting place, there is no need for cruelty. I caress its neck as I slide a needle into it.

I make sure there is no pain.

I then look at her, so dear and calm as if she was asleep, I take her body in my arms and place her gently on the ground.

I took your life and then tried to give it back to you. I take a knife and slice open the horse's abdomen, it's hard work and takes real effort, but it's nothing more then what you deserve.

I find its womb, place you inside with care. Only when you are perfect I begin stitching up the wound in the horse's belly.

I hope that the forces of death and biology will bring you rebirth.

\- x - x - x -

Will opens his eyes, this was something different then usual, he didn't feel nervous or on edge, he felt calm and relaxed. Strange considering the circumstances... Anyway, he lifted his head lightly and called for Jack, him and the rest of the team quickly got back into the scene to continue what they were doing.

"It's a coffin birth." Jack just stood there waiting for him to continue, Will gave a small sigh and spoke again.

"Decomposition builds up gasses within the putrefied body and pushes the dead fetus out of its mother's corpse. It's really more of a prolapse than a birth."

"Not to whoever did this."

"Whoever did this knew the horse, knew she was dying because her foal was born dead, knew this woman." Jack quickly spoke.

"Her name is Sarah Craber." 

Useless so he just continued.

"He's familiar with the stables in a way that made him sure he wouldn't get caught. He works here or maybe used to. He has medical knowledge of animals, but isn't a veterinarian. He considers himself a healer of a sort."

"How is this healing?"

"Sarah Craber was reborn. And a mother and her child are finally on the same side of life. This wasn't murder, Jack. This was grief."

"Strange way to demonstrate grief Will."

"Yeah... Well, I'll head back to the BAU. Can you give me access to those files? I want to take them to Hannibal as soon as I can."

Jack gave him a nod before complementing. "I'll call you if anything else shows up."

He left after that.

#

"Files?"

"Yes."

"The FBI files about you?"

"Yes."

She walked around the room hand in her chin as she looked at her father's face, he was clearly trying to hide the hope he was feeling. He wanted to believe Will was being sincere with them, that he would give them the advantage through information and that Jack had been lied to.

She wanted it to be truth as well, Will had become a dear person in her life and she wanted nothing more then to live as a family with him and her father. But she wasn't blind and she knew Hannibal wasn't either.

It was far too soon for Will to act this way, from running away from them to killing a man and lying to the FBI in such a small space of time?

No.

The girl walked towards her father and put one of her hands on his shoulder before speaking.

"It's too soon for him to be doing this and you know it, we cannot let ourselves be swayed by our emotions like this father."

The look he gave her made her hate Will.

It was rare for her father to try to hide something from her, she was his safe harbour as much as he was hers, they could only be themselves with each other, so when she saw the mute desperation inside those eyes mixing with grief and love she knew that no matter what she felt about the man, if Will Graham ended up betraying them her father wouldn't be the one to put a knife inside him.

It would be her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Daina is Audra's mother, her name means 'song' in Lithuanian, I found it fitting idk.
> 
> Yeah, Audra is getting pissed at Will, she is very protective of Hannibal even if he left her behind all those years ago, kind of like Chiyo in a way. Only less revenge, more dependence and more love. 
> 
> I hope you guys liked it! Thank you so much for reading and leaving kudos and comments, you guys are all amazing! ♥
> 
> Remember that any tips or critics are always welcome.


	25. A Carne é Fraca

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Audra and Hannibal finish their song, kind of. Will can't focus on the files Jack gave him, Hannibal gives him a call, Peter Bernardone appears, Clark Ingram is creepy and some kissing in a bathroom occurs.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The barn scene will end up happening in the next chapter this one would be giant if I wrote it in here so yeah. The music Hannibal and Audra made exists and will also appear on the next chapter, so it's eomthing to look forward to.  
> ALSO I almost forgot, I made a new art for this, you can see it here: http://aburi.deviantart.com/art/The-Lecters-545897864
> 
> Good reading! 
> 
> Disclaimer: I own nothing, just Audra.

"What should we call it?"

Both Hannibal and Audra were sitting by the harpsichord looking at the finished sheet music in front of them almost in a daze, both father and daughter spent the whole night together composing and some part of the morning as well, the sun crept into the house through the windows, signaling them that it was time to finally stop. Hannibal raised one of his hands and gently caressed the paper as he chuckled.

"What?" Asked the girl.

"This is the first time we manage to finish a song, I'm merely surprised that's all." Replied the man making the girl give a small laugh of her own, still smiling she spoke again.

"Well, it's about us isn't it? We were committed." 

"Indeed, our story translated into a waltz." Audra stared at him for a moment, smile lingering on her face before she replied.

"Then it's not done yet father, we still haven't managed to finish a song." The man smiled again and put his right arm over the girl's shoulders as he spoke. 

"Good." A few seconds of silence were interrupted as Audra spoke again.

"Is Will coming here today?" Hannibal gave a small sigh and thought about it. He had to see the empath to judge his honesty, speaking with the man over the phone provided very little and left him in a disadvantage. 

"I'll see to it that he comes here tonight, you should see Abigail in the meantime."

"Very well, if anything goes wrong you know where to find me." The girl got up from where she was sitting and walked towards the kitchen, Hannibal got up as well and walked towards his study. 

He had a call to make.

#

It was morning already and Will was still staring at the files scattered over his bed. He took them from the FBI the day before after visiting the horse crime scene, he'd spent the night reading them as much as he could to take away any crucial information that Hannibal couldn't know, he couldn't jeopardize the investigation that much after all. 

As he looked at the photos of each murder he couldn't help but reconstruct each one inside his head, now that he had a face to associate with the killer it felt easier and much more satisfying. For the first time Will allowed himself to watch the murder and he felt his heart beating faster and faster as he saw Hannibal in each one of them, it was as if he was seeing the man for the first time. 

And he was enchanted.

With each cut he imagined his breathing got more erratic, he saw the cold precision inside Lecter's eyes as he killed the woman on the photo Will had been holding and felt the intimacy of the act, had he taken hold of her hair? Had he pulled to make the access to her throat easier? 

Soon he found himself lying on the bed, breathing still hard as he pulled his own hair like he imagined Hannibal would've done, he forced his mind to concentrate on the ghost of the knife's caress on his neck as Lecter's breath teased his right ear. A shudder traveled on his body when he redirected the path his mind had created to a much sweeter one. 

His free hand found its way to his ribs and tortuously caressed its way down towards his sex, slowly just as Hannibal would've done. 

The screaming inside his head became stronger as the victims mingled together in a messy mix of sound and blood, the memories of faceless people dying one after the other in a domino effect made him gently scratch under his navel, his other hand on his hair pulled a bit and a gasp left him.

How had he gone from analizing crime scenes to touching himself so quickly in such a small space of time he couldn't know.

He felt like one of the victims, just another one affected by the domino effect, but when he remembered that _Hannibal_ was the one pushing the first domino in the first place, a pleased noise left his throat. He was a victim yes, but of Lecter's desire and obsession and right now there was nothing as sweet as that thought.

In the middle of all the screaming happening inside his mind one rough voice stood out, low almost like a purr right over his left ear, he could almost feel the ghost of a breath on it if he tried hard enough, that voice silenced all the rest with only one word, spoken with heat and desire.

"Will..."

His hips went forward on their own volition at that, his hand traveled further down to finally, finally get a hold of his aching sex, the flesh was hot and pulsing under his hand and he gasped at the first squeeze he gave it. His hand moved slowly, teasing as his other hand left his hair and scratched its way down, traveling through his jaw, neck, nipples and thigh, only to travel back up just as slowly. 

It felt like the sweetest torture, much like his love for the man himself. 

"Open your eyes dear Will..." That voice spoke again sweetly for him and he took some time to obey, his fantasy felt so real and he feared it would dissipate if he opened his eyes, but he complied anyway and the sight that awaited him made him lose the rhythm of his hand, going slightly faster and with more pressure as a moan left him. 

Hannibal was over him , floating like the smoke that had haunted his dreams about the Ripper in the past, those reddish eyes stared down at him with a please gim inside them, his skin now black as night dissipated around the air around him gently, his hair fload around slowly making Will ache to touch it. 

He looked like a nightmare. 

He was perfect. 

"Hannibal..." He whined softly as he sped up the rhythm of his hand, his hips twitched to follow its movement as it went up and down, faster and faster... 

"Don't be afraid to travel deeper into your own mind my dear..." Hannibal spoke over him, voice enticing him to slow his hand again, he didn't want this to be over, not so soon. His heart felt like it was about to jump out of his chest, his free hand was clutching to the bed firmly and his breathing mingled with his moans from time to time. He bit his lower lip as his thumb caressed the head of his sex roughly before Hannibal continued.

"No matter how deeply you go, I'll always be with you." And then he approached, Will tried to memorize that gentle smile and those intense eyes before they closed and their lips touched, he found himself covered by that black smoke, for a second he had no idea where he ended and Hannibal started and that alone almost made him reach his peak if not for the ringing of his phone.

Without opening his eyes or take his hand away from his sex, Will took hold of his phone that was lying on his side on the bed and spoke with as much control as he could. 

"Graham."

"Hello Will." 

It was Hannibal.

Will let out a long groan at that and allowed his hand to move again with far more vigor. There was a small second of silence before he could hear the man's voice on the phone again, slightly confused and worried as he spoke.

"Will? Is everything alright?" He had tried to speak he really did, but what got out instead was a long a low moan. 

"Hannibal... Just..." He was gasping and moaning as he sped up his movements, he couldn't speak he couldn't think, he could only listen as the man spoke again, voice slightly rough and dazed as he finally comprehended what was happening, Will heard the characteristic noise of Hannibal's chair over the phone as the man sat down.

"I see... What are you thinking about dear Will?" 

He was so close, so so close and he didn't care about anything anymore, just the hot feel of his hand traveling through his flesh now slick as it captured his precum on its way, he moaned his response fast for he knew he wouldn't last long.

"You... Always you... Oh Hannibal..." He was arching his back and Hannibal's next phrase was what did it for him. 

"You are close, aren't you?" 

He was done. 

The loud mix of a moan and a groan he let out as he arched his back and pleasure traveled over every nerve of his body in rapid pulses made Hannibal let out a pleased humming noise, he turned on his side and his hand finally left his now oversensitive sex, his breathing fast and heavy as he lost himself on the sweet pleasurable pulses that slowly dissipated, leaving only his breathing and Hannibal's on the phone. 

"You are exquisite my dear Will." Lecter's voice was slightly breathless as it purred on his ear, for a moment he allowed himself to forget Hannibal's darkness, the murders, everything and just smiled gently with his eyes closed before he answered the other man, his own voice was as rough and low as it could be.

"Next time, I want you here with me." He felt inspired so he continued. "I want you inside me, I want to be inside of you. I want you in every possible way Hannibal." He was still smiling as he said this, taking great joy in imagining the man's reaction to his brazen actions. The reaction he got was a mix of a low chuckle and a groan, making his smile get wider.

"You never cease to amaze me my dear... Will you come to me tonight?" He hadn't lost the double meaning in Hannibal's phrase and was quick to answer, voice amused when he did.

"I will always come for you Hannibal." The groan he got in return made him give a small chuckle, when Lecter spoke next his voice was almost pained.

"I must go before I do something that'll traumatize Audra for the rest of her life." After a small laugh from both of them Hannibal spoke again. "I look forward to seeing you tonight my dear, goodbye." And then hung up.

Will, who still had his eyes closed, smiled widely and in bliss, when he opened his eyes and saw the bloodied woman on the picture he had been analizing before, dread washed over him. 

He was losing himself, he had just... 

Oh God.

He sat up quickly and tried to shut down that stubborn part of him that still tried to feel happy and giddy for what just happened. 

He couldn't.

He was seeing his own downfall and it frightened him in levels he couldn't explain. It also excited him more then he would like to admit. 

He didn't want to think about it so he just got up from his bed and went to take a shower, when he returned, there was a message on his phone from Jack, something to do with the horse case, apparently they had a suspect. 

Will clung to this chance of distraction, got dressed and quickly lef his house to meet Jack.

#

Will and Jack went to speak with Peter Bernardone that morning and he knew instantly that this man wasn't the killer, sure he did the whole horse thing, but not the killing. He went back to Quantico with Jack, made up some excuse and returned to Peter still in that afternoon. 

As he spoke with the man he found that he liked him, he was a simple and innocent soul clinging to survive in a world of chaos and destruction, Will wanted to protect him and see to it that he lived a comfortable life at least. He deserved it. 

It took a while, but Peter finally started cooperating with him, his walls almost visibly falling apart around him.

"Tell me who killed her." Peter goes still, thoughtful as he look at the bird Will had brought him.

"After something so ugly, I just wanted something beautiful for her." Said Peter in a small voice.

"You were grieving her. You couldn't save her, but you could bring poetry to her death." 

"I wanted you to find me. If you could find me, you could find him." He was clearly scared and when Will spoke next he couldn't help but see himself in those words.

"Do you have a shadow, Peter? Someone only you can see. He's someone you considered a friend who made you feel you weren't alone. Until you saw what he really is, and it made you even lonelier." 

He lied a bit in the end of course, Hannibal didn't make him lonelier, it was the exact opposite.

"No one will believe me. He'll make sure no one will believe me." Will felt angry that this man was suffering like this, he didn't deserve anythingn like that, he was one of the only ones he'd met in his life that were truly good.

"I'll make sure they do."

And thus he heard the name Clark Ingram for the first time. 

He called Hannibal after he left Peter.

"And you want me there?" Asked the man to him after he explained the whole story.

"Yes, you are still a very good psychiatrist right? Besides, I wouldn't want to miss our dinner." That earned him a small laugh. 

Success.

"Very well, I shall meet you at Quantico." After their goodbyes they hang up, Will got inside his car and drove already calling Jack to give him the name.

#

Alana had been inside that room with Clark for a time already and Will was impressed that such a man was still free, he was clearly a psycopathh, his darkness only barely hidden. He wasn't refined like Hannibal though, he was just.... Crazy.

It was disgusting.

She had just tried to touch his hand and the sudden coldness that spread through the man's face was the final proof he needed about his insanity.

"Smart. She keeps pushing him on his feelings, not the facts. She's trying to gauge how comfortable he is with emotion, if he has any. He couldn't bear to be touched by her."

Hannibal's voice is the next to be heard, the man is standing far closer to Will then necessary and the empath noticed the way Jack kept glancing between them, sure the man knew about their relationship and all, but it was the first time he was actually seeing them together, it was... Amusing, to say the least.

"His responses are typical of many psychopaths during interviews, but could also be resentment." Will turned his head towards Hannibal and spoke, tone going unconsciously gentle.

"His eyes are dead. He's a predator." When their eyes met the gentleness in Lecter's eyes stunned him for a moment as well as the softness of his smile as he traced Will's face with his eyes and...

Jack was coughing.

Both men looked at the agent at that, the amused smile that awaited them was not expected, Crawford just raised his eyebrows at them and pointed at the glass separating them from the room where Alana and Clark were and it seemed the man was speaking.

Oh well.

"Society needs caring people. 

The man was completely insane, Will crossed his arms as he watched. 

"It also needs a few psychopaths to keep the rest of us on our toes." Replied Alana with a sweet smile on her face, the man sitting in front of her leaned forward slowly making the woman lean backwards minimally, the smile on his face was gone and only coldness and darkness could be seen now, when he spoke his voice seemed empty.

"There is no evidence I did this."

There was also no more incriminating thing to say as that. Will could feel his blood boil as the man continued to speak.

"And if you want to know how I feel, I feel like I don't want to be here anymore. If I'm not being detained, I'd like to be on my way." Alana watches him without speaking until Jack leaned forward and pressed a button on the console, his voice when he spoke was almost angry, resigned.

"Let him go."

"You're making a mistake, Jack." Replied Will.

"I've got nothing to hold him on Will." 

"Peter Bernardone is psychologically disadvantaged. He's been manipulated. As his social worker, this man is in a position of trust. He betrayed that trust." 

He was angry, there was no way he would allow that man to just walk away, it was a fact that he knew Peter was the one to give his name to the FBI and he most certainly was angry, he would go after the man. 

Peter would end up suffering because he put his trust on Will.

Hannibal put one hand on his shoulder and spoke lowly on his ear. 

"There is nothing we can do now." He nods a bit and they all exit the place, in the corridor Jack speaks as they walk.

"Has Will given you the files yet?" Lecter raised his head at that, he'd been distracted watching the floor apparently. 

"No, not yet." His eyes quickly traveled to Will again, contemplating him. It was clear that the man was still deciding if he could trust him or not, this was a dangerous game he was playing and Hannibal was astute, a single step out of the line and he would end up dead or worse. Jack's question helped him in a way, it showed the doctor that Will had indeed lied to him after al, Jack was far too transparent to deceive someone like Hannibal, if he was lying, Lecter would notice. 

Which is why those maroon eyes focused on him with such apreciation at this moment. 

"Well do it quickly then Will, we need this information about the Ripper as fast as we can."

"I'll give it to him tonight don't worry Jack, I was just revising it this morning." Jack nodded and separated from them after a while, going to his office. Will and Hannibal entered an elevator and as soon as the door closed Lecter spoke.

"Were you?"

"What?" 

"Revising the files." When Will looked at Hannibal he saw a teasing gleam in his eyes as the man smiled with mirth at him, he raised one eyebrow and gave one step closer to the man before he spoke, almost in a whisper.

"Yes, I was recreating every single murder inside my head right before you called." The teasing gleam left Hannibal's eyes in a second only to be substituted by want and heat. Will allowed a small smile to grace his face before he continued. 

"You ended up interrupting me Dr. Lecter." The elevator's door opened and as soon as he gave a step out of it he felt Hannibal's hand on his shoulder guiding him to the right and away from the exit of the building, in confusion Will just followed. The doctor ended up taking him to...

The bathroom? 

What?

As soon as they got inside it, still in silence, Hannibal began opening each door to make sure they were completely alone. He was calm as he did it, walking slowly as if this was natural for him, he looked up as well in search of any cameras which was highly unlikely considering this was a goddamn bathroom and finally the man walked over to the exit door and locked it. 

Huh.

"Hannibal what are you doing?" He gave the empath no answer, he just turned to him and walked in his direction with fast long strides making Will walk backwards and hit his back on the wall, he closed his eyes for a moment, preparing for something, anything. In the end what he felt was the doctor's hands on each side of his head before the man's mouth descended on his. 

Oh so this is what this was about. 

Will let out a low moan a threw his arms around Lecter's neck as he retributed the kiss, he got hold of the man's hair with his right hand and pulled slightly, making the other man let out a humming noise as his hands traveled to his waist, holding him closer against him. It's been so long since he'd touched Hannibal in this way, so so long...

Peter could wait for a moment.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So that happened, I'm never confident in writing intimate moments such as this one, but I thought it would be a nice way of showing how Will is slowly losing himself to his darkness, a way to show that Hannibal's power over him is not only through his mind, he has his body as well. 
> 
> Also I had to add the smoke Alana scene with Hannibal instead, it felt so haunting and worthy of him that I just... Idk, surrendered to it.
> 
> So what did you guys think? Remember that any ideas, critics and comments are always welcome.  
> Thank you so much for reading!


	26. Onde Vive o Controle

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hannibal learns something about Will and gets a bit angry, Clark Ingram is in a delicate situation and a new plan is set into motion, Will has a lesson to learn.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok this time I really took a long time, I'm sorry. This chapter was a tricky one because as I said before the barn scene is really important to me so I hope I made it justice. There's something I feel I should explain first, whenever Will killed someone I've always thought he looked a litle out of it, as if a dormant part of him awoke in those moments, in this fic this happens a lot, this is why he acts a bit different in those moments.
> 
> There are a few words in Lithuanian, so translation time!  
> \- Apatinis: Lower.  
> \- Prašom: Please.
> 
> I hope you guys like this, good reading!  
> \- Disclaimer: I own nothing, only Audra.

"Hannibal we have to go..." 

The man in question was currently biting and licking his neck, his hands holding the empath's waist tightly as he pressed himself against him, the only answer Will got out of this was a small humming noise, it was unusual for him to see Hannibal like this, no matter how many times they had stayed indoors in the past touching each other the doctor had always seemed like he wasn't 100% there, he was always in control of himself as if something tragic would occur if he gave himself completely to the feelings they brought each other. 

Now?

Now it seemed like he wasn't even listening to anything Will had to say, the only thing that seemed to matter to him was the neck under his lips and the empath's hands currently gripping his hair and pulling him closer. 

Hannibal was... Vulnerable.

Only now the power he had over the man got truly clear to him, it was scary to say the least, but still immensely satisfying. To think that a man who's had everyone around him fooled for so many years surrended to him in such a way sent a small shiver over his back. 

This was a hunter, a man who's had tortured people in the past, killed them and eaten them.

He was a monster. 

And he was at his mercy. 

Will decided to test the reach of his control, his hold on Hannibal's hair got tighter making the man let out a small hiss and bite his neck with more strength, Will bit his own lower lip and let his left hand travel from Lecter's hair to his neck, his chest and waist, slowly caressing the other man with gentle precision until his fingers caressed under his navel. Hannibal's hips went forward at this and he spoke something breathlessly on his ear that he couldn't quite understand, so he spoke with a heavy and low tone to him.

"What do you want Hannibal?" 

"Apatinis..." Will couldn't see his face for it was burried on his neck, but his voice was as breathless as before, only more intense and rusky. He had no idea what that word even meant so he turned his head towards Hannibal's and, with his right hand still pulling his hair, licked the man's jaw as he scratched his navel, Lecter gave a groan and spoke again, control slipping slightly.

"Apatinis... Prašom..." Will gave a small dark chuckle at this and lowered his hand, finally gripping Hannibal's erection tightly, making the man groan and put one of his hands on the wall near Will's head and say something else that the empath couldn't understand. After a few strokes Will spoke again, voice strained and rough as he moved his hips against Lecter's thigh to get some friction.

"Did I make you forget..." God he couldn't even finish his sentence, after a sigh he continued. "How to speak in english Hannibal?" 

Something changed and Hannibal wasn't moving anymore.

His breathing, so erratic and uncontroled, was now calm and even. His lips left his neck and his hand that had been holding Will's waist during this whole time left him. 

Then Lecter looked at him and for the first time Will felt like prey.

Many times he'd seen cracks on the man's mask, showing him bits of darkness, desire and hunger, but it was never like this. Never before had Lecter looked at him with such a raw expression. Will could see it all and it was too much, he couldn't breathe or move. 

This wasn't simply Hannibal Lecter staring back at him, it was the Chesapeake Ripper.

And Will was afraid.

He felt as if any movement would be the wrong one, different from the other man he didn't have the same frightening control of his body to the point of stop his slightly shaking, he barely stopped a small jump when he felt Lecter's hand on his own still under the man's pants, slowly he took it away and straighened his clothes as best as he could, all the while staring at Will's eyes. After the man finished he took his hand to the empath's cheek and caressed it gently before turning, walking towards the door and getting out of the bathroom.

Only then Will could breathe again.

He had made a mistake, he had let Hannibal realize that he knew the power he had over him.

Would he kill him? Would he kill Abigail or even Audra? 

Slowly he sat down on the floor trying to calm down. He couldn't panic now, this wasn't much, Hannibal would only be more guarded now, Will wouldn't lose him or the girls. 

As he sat there trying to regain his breath the sensate part of his brain chasticised him for worrying about losing the man and not about not being able to arrest him instead.

#

Hannibal walked calmly through the corridors of the building and towards the exit. The world had no way of knowing about the storm inside his mind as he moved.

Will Graham never failed to amaze him, he could've smiled at the man's audacity a few moments ago as he tested the reach of his control over him, discreetly and lovingly enough to blind Hannibal to his real intentions, but still obvious enough that he had perceived it. His little mongoose has finally realized the extent of his influence and Lecter had no idea how to feel about this. 

The amount of control he had over himself didn't erase the feelings per se, he was still capable of feeling emotions just like any man, it was the extentions of his reactions that made his control over himself a necessity. He felt anger for letting Will control him in such a way, his hopes that the man would join them were blinding him to the real threat that the empath represented to him and his daughter and Hannibal couldn't have that. 

He walked in silence towards his car, thoughts running wild inside his mind, as he got inside he quickly got hold of his phone and dialed a familiar number. He had little time before the empath appeared, he and Hannibal still had to see Peter after all. 

"Father?"

"Audra, are you home?" 

"Yes."

"Alone?"

"Yes."

"Listen carefully then, go to the basement and make sure Mr. Tier's organs are taken care of, after that I need you to take the rest of his body to Wolftrap and wait for me there."

"Ok, what did Will do?" He could hear the girl already moving around the house in a hurry, Hannibal gave a small sigh at the question, she knew him far too well, and spoke.

"Dear Will has an important lesson to learn, I'll explain the details when I see you there. Hide in his barn until I arrive."

"Very well." 

"Be careful." With that he hung up and waited for the empath. A few minutes passed until the man entered his car, he was visily trying to hide how shaken he was with what had happened between them and Hannibal could hardly blame him. 

Of course, he acted as if nothing had happened at all and amused himself with the dance of emotions on Will's face at this, it annoyed Hannibal a bit to see the other man so cornered, he was Hannibal's creation therefore he was above such petty reactions.

But he understood, he had shown the man far too much and Will was clever enough to know danger when he saw it, his reaction was not so distant from reason.

"Shall we?" He said as he started the engine of the car, Will said nothing in return, only gave him a small nod and finally, Hannibal drove.

#

When they arrived at the place Will hurried to leave the car and run towards the shelter in search of Peter leaving Hannibal behind, said man gave a small sigh before getting out of the vehicle and following the empath into the place. 

Chaos awaited them.

The place was a mess, few animals could be seen, small birds that were lucky enough to fly away when necessary, cages were thrown aside opened with no regard for the life that resided in it. But there was no sign of Peter himself. Will's reaction as he watched the room amused him, the sense of justice in him was still so strong, blinding him to the course his actions would take. Only later the agent would call them honorable, using any excuse he could to do so.

The empath drew his gun and runned past him, Lecter let out a huf of a laughter as he heard the man calling for Peter's name, louder and louder with no regard to their safety of discretion. 

The sudden silence made him leave the place and follow the other man, Will had gotten inside a barn and oh, there was Peter, covered in blood, kneeling on the floor besides a horse.

Besides a dead horse with a terrible wound on its belly, which Bernardone had been patiently stitching. 

Will lowered his gun and Hannibal stepped back, allowing himself to watch this.

"Peter... Is your social worker inside that horse?" 

The man nodded before he spoke without stopping his work.

"We are hardwired to see human beings everywhere. Every animal, every life. We're all human." 

"Even God is personified." Replied Hannibal to which Peter spoke again.

"He couldn't see that, he forfeited his humanity and I forfeited mine. I used to have a horrible fear of hurting anything. He helped me get over that. Feels so abnormal." 

Lecter sneaked a look to Will's face, the sadness there and empathy was so great it almost moved him, he turned his vision back to Peter and spoke.

"An abnormal reaction to an abnormal situation is normal behavior."

"He deserves to die." Said Peter.

For the first time since their interaction began Will spoke, his tone sad and resigned. It was inevitable Hannibal knew that, the empath saw far too much of himself in that man kneeling on the floor.

"But you didn't deserve to kill him." Will closed his eyes with a heavy frown and gave a sigh, after that he spoke again. "I want you to come with me, Peter." 

The other man nods, stands and allows Will to lead him away from the building. Hannibal stayed behind and went to examine the horse, he could after all appreciate another's work while he was here. 

Though he was surprised to see the horse's belly moving.

A slow smile spread over his face as he watched the slow movements on the horse's skin.

Oh.

This was rich.

#

Peter began opening a few cages as they spoke, Will just looked at him. This man was a victim, he trusted him to catch the man who had made him suffer so much and Will had failed him so drastically that the man was now truly guilty of murder. Peter's voice was calm, sad and innocent when he spoke.

"Some of them will survive on their own. Some of them won't. Some of them will come home. But I won't be here when they do, will I?" 

It hurt him to answer this.

"No."

"I hate him." Replied Peter.

"I envy your hate. Makes it much easier when you know how to feel." The other man raised his head in confusion as he looked at him and asked.

"Makes what easier?"

"Killing them."

"I didn't kill him. I wanted him to wake up in death and choke on it."

It took him a second and oh.

Oh my God.

Will ran.

Clark was alive inside that horse. 

When he got into the barn he drew out his gun and looked as the man crawled his way out of the animal, blood smeared across his entire body as he breathed with difficulty. Hannibal was feeding a sheep as he watched amused. 

Figures.

Lecter's voice could be heard in a second. "Mr. Ingram."

Clark stilled his movements, obviously not expecting someone else there other then Peter, Will noticed the doctor tilting his head slightly towards him. 

He was noticed already. 

After this Hannibal continued.

"Might want to crawl back in there, if you know what's good for you." He stepped aside giving Will the chance of approaching the man now kneeling on the floor. When Ingram saw the look in his eyes he dropped the hammer he had been holding and quickly began speaking.

"Officer, I'm the victim here."

The rage he was feeling now couldn't be described.

"I'm not an officer. I'm a friend of Peter's." After he said this a satisfied smile spread across his face as the other man's smile fell, still with his hands up the man spoke again, trying to reason with him.

"Peter's confused."

"I'm not. Pick up the hammer."

"Will." Hannibal said on his ear, he didn't even notice the man getting so close to him so focused he was on Clark. The man was behind him, one hand on his waist as his head approached his right ear, he ignored the doctor and spoke again, clear anger on his voice, Will was in a frenzy much like in the day he killed Randall Tier, his focus was completely on the man kneeling in front of him, thing else mattered besides his death. 

He had started this.

He needed to finish.

"Pick it up." The man did and Hannibal spoke again, voice low almost a purr.

"Do you think this will feel the same Will? No fight, no struggle. This is no murder, this is an execution." 

"It doesn't have to feel the same, I know what it will feel like." Still pointing his gun at the other man he inclined his head to the side, making it get in contact with Hannibal's cheek, he continued. "It'll feel good."

"You did the best anyone could do for Peter, but don't do this for him, not for Mr. Ingram's victims or their many friends and relatives who would love to see him dead." Hannibal's voice was now a whisper on his ear.

"If you're going to do this, Will... You have to do it for yourself."

Will looked at him and saw inside those eyes just how Hannibal was seeing him at the moment.

Transcendental. 

Unique. 

Divine.

He also saw this was a test, Lecter's trust was on the line and Will knew what choice the man wanted him to make, but he didn't care about it, not anymore. 

He just wanted to kill this man, this pig, not for Hannibal's trust or for Peter's sake, but because he wanted to do it. Right now as his gun pointed at Clark's head, with the man crying and pleading for his life, there was no Hannibal and no God.

There was only him.

He pulled the trigger, but there was no sound besides a soft click, Will focused his look on the gun and saw that Hannibal had put his finger between the hammer and the firing pin. His eyes were empty as they watched Lecter's, how dare he do this? Who was he to do this? 

There was a hand gently closing in on his own, it caressed its way over it as it took the gun away from him, the other one found its resting place on his neck, gently stroking his hair as it pulled Will's face closer to Hannibal's.

The man looked pleased beyond measure, there was fire burning in his eyes again and he looked at Will as if nothing else existed in the world, when he spoke his voice sounded as reverent as his expression was.

"With all my knowledge and intrusion, I could never entirely predict you. I can feed the caterpillar, whisper through the chrysalis, but what hatches follows its own nature and is beyond me..." 

Will couldn't speak, he was right. No matter the reason behind his attempts at arresting Hannibal, he always seemed to end in the same situation, with death always as a guest. Now as he looked at that face he adored so much he saw it, Lecter being arrested or not made no difference anymore, there would always be another monster set loose. 

Only this time it would be him, there was no escaping that. 

Letting out a heavy breath, Will raised his free hand towards Hannibal's face and traced the man's cheekbones with his fingers, in almost a whisper he spoke with a dazed voice.

"There is no word strong enough for what we are to each other..." Hannibal hummed in response before getting even closer and touching his nose to Will's making their lips gently brush each other as he said.

"There never will be." Will gave a half smile and replied.

"What should we do about him?" And pointed to Ingram, the man was still kneeling in the floor crying, the shock may have made him unable to run away when he'd had the chance. Hannibal contemplated the man for a second before speaking.

"Let's not steal this victory from Mr. Bernardone, I believe he should finish what he's started." 

"He will be scarred for life." Said him as he looked at Clark.

"He already is." Will hummed in response before speaking again. "Peter should be the one to choose this, not us." With that he turned and walked out of the barn, when he returned it was with Peter on his side, Lecter's smile got slightly wider when he saw them. The doctor gave two steps closer to them as he spoke. 

"Mr. Bernardone, as you can see Mr. Ingram here has escaped." After a second he continued "What should be done about that?"

Peter decided fairly quickly.

This time, they both stayed to help him make sure the stitches wouldn't crack open again.

#

Hannibal drove him back home after the event.

Will looked outside of the window during all of the course, thinking about himself and his motivations, the frenzy was over and he felt... Empty, did he still want to cage Hannibal? Did he still want to take the man away from his daughter? From Abigail? 

From himself?

As he turned his head and looked at the man driving he felt something clench inside his chest, Hannibal meant far too much for him, he had to do this he knew that, he just didn't know if he could. 

If the man noticed his staring or his internal turmoil he didn't mention it until the point they were stopping in front of his house in Wolftrap. Lecter turned his gentle eyes to him and gave him a small smile before getting out of the car. Will followed suit and watched the other man for a second as he walked in the house's direction. After a sigh he followed.

Both men walked the stairs in silence towards his room, when they got inside Will noticed Lecter's expression becoming slowly amused as he saw the files scattered over the empath's messy bed, he knew the man wouldn't forget what had happened on that bed that morning so he just ignored him and walked to it, busying himself in organizing the files.

After he was done he felt a gentle pressure on his shoulder and turned, there was Hannibal looking at him with a serene expression, he got closer and started to slowly unbutton his shirt, this time without maintaining eye contact with Will, making it easier for the empath to watch his face during the whole process. 

With each opened button Will's forts crumbled a little bit more and before he could control himself he reached forward and kissed Hannibal, after moving his lips for a small moment Lecter stepped back and smiled at him before speaking softly.

"Wait here." With this the man walked down the stairs leaving a very confused Will Graham in the middle of the room, having nothing else to do he just sat down on the bed. Hannibal returned with two glasses of whiskey making him give a small chuckle as he accepted his. As Lecre sat on his side Will spoke with an amused tone.

"Cheers." They toasted and drank, the doctor caressed his face gently after this and pushed Will gently until he was fully lying down he let his arm fall down from the bed to drop his cup and watched as Hannibal did the same before lying down besides him. They watched each other for a moment before Will felt the first symptomes of exaustion in him, before heh slept he crept closer to the doctor and spoke with a slurred voice.

"Will you be here when I wake up?" He felt a kiss on his head before hearing Lecter speak.

"Always."

Finally everything went black.

#

"Hello father."

Hannibal entered the barn and saw Audra there, it was a surprise when he looked up and saw Randal's armor hanging from the ceiling. This would make things easier. He noticed that Audra was already wearing her own plastic clothing to protect herself, with a smile he saw his own on top of a chair in the corner of the room. 

She came prepared. 

"Audra." He approached her smiling and gave her a kiss on her head, after that the girl guided him towards the body he'd asked her to bring. "Well done my dear." She smiled at him before she spoke.

"Did you drug Will?" Her tone was amused, he blinked at her before speaking, voice playful.

"Will just had too much whiskey that's all." The girl laughed and shook her head, after a second she asked. 

"Why exactly are we doing this?" 

"We must show our dear empath where control truly resides." He approached a box filled with tools and got a hold of two saws, he walked back at the girl and gave one of them to her. "Shall we?"

"Just like old times." Said her smiling. He was thrillled to be doing this with her again, after he dressed himself with the plastic suit, they cut Mr. Tier's limbs together he couldn't help but feel a little giddy, they talked, joked and laughed as lowly as they could. When they were done, the body was thrown in the bottom of a nearby freezer along with some organs they wouldn't cook. They cleaned the place thoroughly before leaving, as they walked to the woods where Audra had parked the car she had driven when she came Hannibal spoke.

"I believe Abigail has been blind for far too long, don't you agree?" The girl raised her eyebrows at this and answered.

"I couldn't say, do you think she's ready?"

"Keeping our secret to Will alone is becoming a challenge, soon he will find out about you. Better if we have the element of surprise."

"Well... If you think so, we could tell her." Audra shrugged as she said this and then continued. "What about Will? Do you think he's still a threat?"

"He'll always be a threat, although I believe Will is already close to where we need him to be, only one more push and we'll see if he will accept himself or not." They finally arrived at the car, Audra entered it and started its engine before opening the window after Hannibal knocked on it with his fingers a few times to listen what he had to say.

"Tomorrow I won't be returning home until nightfall, I have some patients I must see. There's something I need you to do during the afternoon."

"What is it?"

"I need you to call Freddie Lounds."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And Freddie Lounds will appear! For what it'll only be said in the next chapter but I think you guys may have noticed already what Hannibal has in mind, or at least suspect. Also, I HAD TO KILL CLARK OK? HE'S A MONSTER AND DESERVED IT UGH. 
> 
> Will is having doubts, he's learning to accept his darker side, it's pure sttuborness that makes him still want to arrest Hannibal at this point so yeah, there's that. 
> 
> Anyways what did you guys think? Remember that any idea, critics or comments are always welcome.  
> Thank you so much for reading!


	27. O Último Teste

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hannibal gets his files, Freddie needs to learn that a lock is there for a reason, Abigail is a bamf and Audra is happy for the new family member. Will? He has too much to deal with.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And at last, after almost a month I am back with a new chapter. I AM SO SORRY COLLEGE HAS BEEN KILLING ME I'LL TRY TO POST IT FASTER I SWEAR. 
> 
> It took me a week to write this because it was made piece by piece, I had no time whatsoever, so I hope you all enjoy it.  
> Good reading!
> 
> Disclaimer: I own nothing, only Audra.

She felt happy for the first time in a long time. 

After everything that happened with her father, Abigail finally felt like she'd found a family, a real family that carried with it everything that she knew lacked in her old life. There was no pressure in feeling happy with them, everything felt easy and she didn't want it to end. There were moments so treasured by her, that soon began to surpass her father's memories. 

The fishing days at Will's house.

Hannibal's cooking and dinner parties.

Though Audra's visits helped the most she thought, they reminded her that she was still young, the casual foolishness of their conversations lifted the girl's humour and made her forget for only a moment about everything negative that happened in the past, Will and Hannibal's presence, be it as nice as it is, reminded her far too much of her own father with their paternal ways being always directed at her. Audra's presence freed her of this. 

But Abigail couldn't fool herself into thinking everything was normal again. 

She knew there was something lurking in the air around them, the beauty of their relationship could very much be compared to life, so intense and misterious, easy and gratifying, full of happiness to be found and adventures to be had. 

And just like life, the girl felt that this path they were taking led them towards death. 

Implacable and inevitable death. 

She knew there was something different about the Lecters, Hannibal mainly. After the man helped her with Nick's body a constant wariness loomed over the girl even if the doctor was very dear to her, after all there was no denying that he truly was, he helped her in ways that many wouldn't, crossing barries that none would dare to, he was safe. 

But she wasn't safe with him.

Staying on the man's good side was a priority ever since that fateful night in Minnesota and Audra had seemed like the perfect way to do it. 

She didn't expect the real friendship she found in the girl, after a time Abigail found that she didn't have to pretend anymore, every laugh, smile and secret shared by them felt precious and genuine. Audra Lecter had become a pillar to her, she loved the moments she spent with the girl and she couldn't say that she was ready to give that up.

Whatever strange the Lecters were, now they were family. 

Abigail knew that something was bound to happen, she had felt like this before and soon her father was trying to cut her throat. 

But this time it would be different, she wouldn't ignore this feeling and allow herself to be molded by unknown forces, she was tired of being directed by everyone else.

Abigail Hobbs was going to take control over her own fate.

#

"Will."

The man lying on the bed groaned softly and turned his body away from him. Hannibal smiled gently at the image from where he sat at the edge of the bed, these days it was rare for him to see the empath in this manner, so vulnerable and trusting. The sweet movements of the man's breathing lured Hannibal, it calmed him and invited him to fully appreciate the empath's beauty.

Even if for a short moment.

He took his right hand towards Will's shoulder and allowed the tips of his fingers to grace the skin there, the smile on his face got slightly wider when he heard the soft sigh the empath gave at the contact. Lecter inclined his body forward and spoke close to the other man's ear.

"Wake up, mylimasis." After another lovely sound coming from Will's throat the man finally turned to him with half opened eyes and a frown. 

There were no words to describe such ethereal creature.

"Hannibal?" His voice was slightly rough from sleep. "I... What?" 

"You asked me to be here when you woke up." 

"And here you are." There was a lazy smile on the man's face as he spoke this, it made Hannibal even more certain of his decision. 

Will's test would come soon, this sudden acceptance coming from the man only made thing easier, he knew that Will's true nature was flourishing already, the only thing keeping his dear empath away from him now was his stubbornness, Hannibal had to give him only one more nudge in the right direction and the agent would finally become what he's always meant to be.

His.

"And here I am." Replied Hannibal smiling, Will's eyes closed at this as his smile slowly left his face, his expression turning into something serene and calm. He then spoke, voice serious but still carrying a subtle gentle tone. 

"What have you done to me Hannibal?"

"Why do you believe I've done something to you?" He couldn't help the amused tone his voice took when he said this, Will laughed as he slowly sat on the bed, supporting his weight on his hands behind him, this made the empath's face stay closer to his own, his smell invaded Hannibal's nose, the hot puffs of his breath near his cheek and the deep colour of his eyes so close to him. 

Hannibal was lost to him as much as he was lost to Hannibal.

He had to end this situation soon, Will had to embrace what he was before things got out of his control completely, he trusted Audra to ease the situation with Abigail before he told her about them. As requested by the girl, he'd already prepared everything necessary for them to leave at any moment now. 

But they were waiting for Will.

They couldn't leave without him.

So deep was Hannibal inside his own mind that he almost didn't realize the empath was speaking.

"You are molding me in your own image Hannibal, there is no denying that."

"My dear Will..." Hannibal raised his right hand and allowed his fingers to thread over the empath's hair, softly as he looked into his eyes, when he spoke his voice was serious but still affectionate, almost... Reverent.

"I wouldn't dare to change a single thing about you, any matter of influence that I have may only bring out your own natural beauty." Will's lips were parted now, the characteristic frown was present as he watched Hannibal with interest, eyes slightly wide. He needed to feed the turmoil inside the empath's mind, Will had to see how magnificent he was, he had to allow himself the oportunity to become more, so he continued.

"Much like a masterpiece, you only need the perfect light to be admired."

"And you are that light?" Will asked this with a raised eyebrow, looking at Hannibal with an almost unimpressed look. He could feel his lips turning upwards without his consent for a second before replying with an amused tone. 

"I turned it on." Will graced him with one of his rare gentle laughter, making the smile on Hannibal's lips get wider before the empath spoke again as he looked away from Hannibal.

"As you said, you can't control the nature of what hatches." 

"No, I can't." There was silence for a moment before the ringing of a cell phone disturbed it, it was Hannibal's phone, quickly excusing himself he went away to take the call. It was a patient. With a sigh Hannibal returned to the room, Will was still sitting on the bed looking ahead distractely. 

"I must leave, a patient called." The empath gave him a small nod before speaking. "Take the files, they are on the desk over there." Hannibal followed his instruction and saw said files, he noticed they were unorganized and that some of them were separated from the rest of the pile. 

Will must've wanted to protect the investigation, he must've tried to avoid Hannibal seeing critical information, what happened with Peter hadn't allowed the man to properly hide the things. 

He allowed a smile to grace his face, he turned his head and looked at the man on the bed still lost inside his own world, approached the desk and got a hold of the files.

All of them. 

#

The call had been unexpected. 

A woman had called her earlier this afternoon, no name has been given but Freddie could tell from the accent that the woman must have been from England or at least lived there at some point. She seemed nervous, her voice shook as she claimed to have information about Will Graham that would please her, so she listened.

Hence why she was now here standing on Will's veranda peering through his door, the woman had confirmed that the empath was involved in the sudden disappearance of Randall Tier and, if true, it was far too good for her to ignore it. She didn't hear any noise inside the house besides the paws on the floor of Will's dogs, she approached a window and her suspition was confirmed, he was not inside. 

The door was the next thing she tried to open with no success, after looking around the house for a while frustration started to creep its way inside Freddie's mind, maybe the woman had been wrong, maybe her lead wasn't good enough. That was until she saw there was a barn at the back of the house, secluded but still close enough. 

She walked to it with certainty and as soon as she stood in front of the big doors of the place she noticed a lock. 

No problem so far. 

She takes her lock picking tools from inside her bag and starts working on the it, not long after that and the door was opened. The woman smiled to herself and got inside, what awaited her was not what she expected.

There was an armour hanging from the ceiling like a skinned animal from a beam, it was fairly damaged from what she could tell, specially on its strange helmet. 

She quickly opened her bag to get her camera and capture the moment. 

This was evidence enough that the empath may be involved at the disappearance, it wasn't concrete, but when had that been a problem? 

Only if it were true she had to hurry, she hadn't seen the man and didn't know where he was now, she couldn't risk it. So she started taking pictures of all the place in a frenzy, it wasnt long before she noticed the freezer in a corner of the room, quickly hanging the camera on her neck, Lounds approached it. 

It was locked.

With a sigh she retrieved her tools again and opened it. 

Randall Tier's eyes were the first thing she saw. 

She froze as she looked at it, her breathing became faster and faster, she'd always known that something was wrong with Will Graham, the man's insanity masked as a disorder to appease those around him. He was a monster hiding in plain sight and she was now at his den. 

Making quick work of it, Freddie took her camera and began taking more pictures of the body inside the freezer, Tier had been desmembered, his head lay on top of his torso as his arms and legs rested on top of the ice around it, twisted and broken. There were also organs scattered over the pieces, scrambled with no respect whatsoever. So deep into her work she was that she almost lost the door of the barn opening, it was the light that flooded the room that startled her, quickly she turned and saw Will's silhuete behind her.

His face looked surprised only for a second before the man looked at the armour hanging in the ceiling and at the freezer before something akin to understanding washed his face. 

That was when he became expressionless. 

Freddie stared at him in horror as he calmly closed the door behind him, blocking her way out. With no doubt she searched inside her bag for her revolver and as soon as she had it on her hand she pointed it at him. To her surprise, he began speaking.

"There is a very good explanation for all of this."

"I don't want to hear it." Will took one step closer to her as she took one back, hands shaking.

"You're not the least bit curious?"

She would've applauded his attempt to manipulate her if she weren't his prey at the moment.

"Get away from the door."

"I can't let you go, Freddie. Not without hearing what I have to say." He raised his hands and took another step closer, his voice's tone was aiming for gentle and calm she could tell, but it could only let out threat and danger. "I know you're scared, you only have to be scared just a little bit longer, now please give me the gun." With that last phrase he puts one hand forward in waiting for her gun.

She wouldn't stay here waiting for him to kill her, no matter what happened she wouldn't go down without a fight. 

She fired.

Will moved fast after the bullet narrowly missed him, quickly charging with violence against her, she kept firing up until the moment he wreched the gun from her hand, everything was so fast, in a moment she was kicking him and fighting, screams found their way out of her throat as she did it, and in the next his hands were around her neck, squeezing it with such strength that breathing became a challenge. 

After a moment her movements became sloppy and slow, she was dizzy and her heartbeat haunted her ear before she heard soft whisper close to it.

"Shhh... You'll understand, relax Freddie..." 

Everything was becoming darker.

It was with the thought of how much she wanted to live that everything turned to black.

#

"Can I ask you a question?"

"Sure, what is it?"

"Would you like to live with us?"

Abigail's eyes widened as she looked at the other girl, they were both at Audra's bedroom with the Lecter girl sitting on the floor and her on the bed. The question had been a surprise, Abigail straightened herself and spoke, voice cautious as she did so.

"Hum... I don't know if I could? Dr. Bloom would have to release me from her care first I think."

"Father could help with that, and you are always here anyway and..." She'd never seen Audra like this before, the girl looked anxious, losing herself inside her words as she tried to speak, after a sigh coming from the other girl, she continued. "You seem... Happier here Abigail and I know father would want this as well, wouldn't you?"

This was big. 

As Abigail looked at Audra she thought about what this meant, her suspitions about the Lecters were still in place and this was a chance to become aware of them in all times, she didn't believe they wanted to hurt her if their actions were any indicative. 

They saw her as part of their family. 

There was nothing that she wanted more then for it to be truth right now.

"Yes... I would like that very much." The smile in Audra's face made her smile in return, even without the advantage of information and safety, she wanted to be closer to this girl, to call her sister and be there for her just as she knew the reverse would also be true. Audra wouldn't abandon her. 

The other girl rose up from the floor and sat down on the bed next to her, speaking happily as she did.

"We need to tell father as soon as he arrives, he'll be so happy Abigail!" 

"What about Dr. Bloom?" She watched as the other girl stopped and became serious, a frown graced her face as she thought about it.

"Well... You need to be stable enough to be released right?"

"Right." That made Audra shrug before speaking.

"If we managed to convince Jack Crawford of your innocence, we can convince Dr. Bloom."

And that was all the confirmation Abigail needed that Audra was as involved in whatever had been happening around them as Hannibal. No one would remain that calm about such a matter, she seemed familiar with the concept even and that should worry Abigail far more then it did, but it was no problem, the fact that the Lecter girl had been so brazen showed that she was trusted. 

It was with a smile that she spoke again.

"Ok, let's talk with Hannibal as soon as he comes home." And the case was over for now, things went back to normal as their conversation began to flow again, about nothings and everythings until Abigail thought about her decision of taking control of her fate, well, no better moment to start then now. With that thought in mind she asked.

"Did Hannibal tell you about what happened to my family?"

Audra's expression turned serious at this as she nodded slowly in silence, waiting for Abigail to continue, even with the confirmation she began explaining.

"Someone called our house and asked to speak with dad, after the phone call he was strange... Like he was not there completely." She was looking away from Audra as she said this, after a sigh she continued. "Later he killed my mom in front of me and then tried to kill me, the police thinks that whoever called talked my dad into it."

There was silence after she said this and when she raised her eyes and looked at Audra she almost flinched at what she saw, whatever easy expression the girl had, had left her and she stared at Abigail with a blank expression, she couldn't back down now. 

She was in control for the first time, she couldn't end it so quickly.

"I know Hannibal was the one to call us, I recognized his voice." Surprise came onto Audra's face a little bit too late at this, the Hobbs girl spoke quickly before something negative came out of this, she knew now that she was playing with fire and she had to be careful not to get burned. 

"They think the caller was a serial killer, but I know that the idea is _completely_ impossible." A smirk was slowly forming on Abigail's lips as she said this, trying to show Audra that yes, she knew, but she was now on their side. She wouldn't betray her new family. The other girl's eyes widened in a minimal way at this and her lips parted slightly, now _that_ was true shock.

Abigail put her hand on top of Audra's and smiled in a gentle way before speaking in an equaly gentle tone. 

"I would love to be a part of your family if you would have me Audra." Abigail had exactly one second before the other girl approached her enough to give her a kiss on her forehead, which was accompanied but a tight hug before she spoke. 

"You are family already Abigail."

Abigail smiled and returned the hug. She wasn't the threatened one anymore.

She was now part of the threat.

#

Hannibal arrived home in time to prepare dinner for himself and Audra. 

He needed to speak with the girl and make sure that she had done what he'd asked her on the previous day, as he took off his coat and entered the living room he called her name, it was a surprise to see not only her walking down the stairs but Abigail as well. He really shouldn't feel like this, the girls were always together, it was safe to say that the Hobbs girl was the first real friend Audra had had in all of her life, anyone else that had crossed paths with the girl hadn't been worthy of it. With a pleased smile he spoke.

"Abigail, what a lovely surprise."

"Father we must speak with you about something." Said Audra to him with a smile, he frowned for a moment, that was a real smile not forced in one bit. He gave a nod and gestured towards the sofa for them to sit, after they did, his daughter spoke again.

"Abigail wants to live with us." 

His eyebrows went up at this and he directed his eyes towards the Hobbs girl, she had her arms in front of her body as she sat down, there was a small smile on her face directed at Audra, maybe because of her bluntness as she spoke. 

He would have to have words with her about this. 

But now wasn't time to think about this, Abigail wanting to live with them was a big step and he felt immensely pleased with this development, he didn't have to pretend any emotions as he smiled down at the girl.

"Really? Nothing would please me more Abigail." The girl smiled at him and spoke.

"Thank you, though there is a problem."

"Which is?" It was Audra that answered.

"Dr. Bloom, she needs to release Abigail from her care first." As soon as the girl finished, Abigail started speaking as if finishing the other's phrase.

Hannibal was amused.

"We figured that since we managed to deceive the FBI, we may be able to deceive her."

That made him stop and stare at the girl, this wasn't something she would normally say in this situation, she had a smile on her face and a knowing expression, she was trying to tell him without words that she knew about them. Hannibal kept his appearances of course, but he felt absolutely startled as he turned his eyes towards his daughter, only to have her nodding in return. 

Well he had wanted for the girl to know soon.

Only he thought he would be the one to tell her.

Oh well.

"I see... Well, you're right, Alana has a wonderful mind though it can be easily maneuvered, I'm sure you'll do fine."

The smile he received in return was almost blinding, she seemed receptive enough of them and strangely accepting, he had to make sure the girl could be trusted and speak with Audra later in solitude to understand what had happened earlier in the afternoon, but for now he would enjoy this moment. Everything was going according to plan and he couldn't help but feel a little giddy with it. 

"Well, since we're all here together, how would you both like to help me with dinner?" He said this as he rose up from the couch and watched amused as both girls looked at each other and returned their eyes to him nodding and getting up from where they were. 

This was terrific, the family was almost complete.

There was only one member missing.

**\- ON THE NEXT DAY -**

His phone was what woke him up, Hannibal stretched briefly before getting a hold of the annoying thing.

"Hello?"

"Dr. Lecter I'm so sorry for bothering you so early, but something happened and I still can't find Will." 

That woke him up alright.

"What happened?"

"We found a body, forensics say it's Freddie Lounds."

Oh.

_Will._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I needed Abigail to be more strong, after I saw her and Hannibal forging her death together there is a whole new perpective of her. The only member who is missing is Will and now he has no idea that Abigail is on the Lecter's side, he is struggling with himself but is quickly losing this battle. As we are now in Naka-Choko there are few episodes left, idk people, we might be closer to the end then we thought. D: 
> 
> So what did you guys think? Remember that comments, ideas and critics are always welcome. Thank you so much for reading. (And waiting for this to get updated.)


	28. Entregando-se

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They become one.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And after a long time of college and recovering from the finale here I am updating this fic! This chapter is gigantic and there is smut in it, which I'm not really confident because it's the first time I write smut like this so... Yeah have mercy on me.
> 
> Good reading! (IF YOU SEE ANY TYPOS TELL ME AND I'LL CORRECT IT)
> 
> TRANSLATIONS:  
> As tave labai myliu = I love you very much.  
> Beprasmis raginis senis = Senseless horny old man.
> 
> Disclaimer: I own nothing, only Audra.

Audra had just woken up, it was morning still and the house was strangely noisy. Usually the sounds of her father preparing breakfast could be heard at this hour, but there was also music in the air, loud, joyful and utterly anoying if only for the fact that the same song has been playing in repeat for a long time.

It was Vivaldi.

Spring.

The girl sat down on her bed and listened to it for a few seconds, her father was a very controled man, even with her present he'd always show only enough of how he was feeling. Discretion coming from someone like him was to be expected, hence her confusion for this almost silly demonstration of joy. He wouldn't express it like this, that's not how he worked.

She got up from her bed and went down the stairs as she left the room, following the loud noise. Could this be because of Abigail? They still hadn't spoken about what had occured on the last day, with the Hobbs girl apparently on their side, things would be different. Specially regarding Will.

Speaking of the empath, Audra hadn't seen him in a while. She wondered what had happened with him after she called Freddie Lounds on the previous afternoon, after all she still couldn't find it in her to trust him so blindly as her father did, this would be his final test and depending on the result, she would fully embrace Will Graham. But for now she just wanted to know what had happened that made her father so happy.

There were files scattered over the table at the dining room, pictures of murders that she could only assume her father had been the author. 

Ah, those were the files Will had promised.

When she directed her way into the kitchen she had to admit the surprise she felt. 

Her father was cooking breakfast, as usual, the only difference it that he was also gently swaying to the music, a soft smile on his face as he distractely checked the food as it cooked. 

Well.

Whatever happened it better be good.

"May I ask the reason for such joy?"

He didn't jump, he would never do that, but he did abruptly stop his movements when he heard her voice. The smile never left his face as he turned and spoke to her. 

"You're awake, come and join me my dear, there is much to talk about."

Narrowing her eyes, Audra finally approached him and supported her weight on the counter, as she did so, Hannibal spoke again.

"We haven't spoken about the events of the previous evening, Abigail living here is a drastic change." He turned again from her as he said this, concentrating on the food. After a few seconds he continued. "We must watch her for a time of course, can't be too careful. I'm sure that won't be a problem?"

"It won't."

"Splendid." 

Audra waited for him to say anything else but nothing, he just continued to cook with a pleased expression on his face as if the discussion was over. 

"Hm... Father?"

"Yes my dear?"

"What happened?"

"Freddie Lounds is dead." 

Audra's eyes widened, her lips parted and her breathing stopped. 

Freddie Lounds was dead, that would mean only one thing and it was too good to be truth. She knew the woman went to Wolf Trap, she had followed her up to a point after the call. A bit lost and in shock Audra focused her vision on her father and watched as he stared back at her with a gentle knowing look.

She felt foolish for feeling so much, for allowing control to slip away from her so easily as this. Will had killed Freddie Lounds, he had accepted himself, he had finally accepted their small strange family.

He had accepted her.

Suddenly every thought that she'd been burrying deep inside her mind came forth.

Will would be there for her in the future as well as Abigail, their small traditions of fishing, running with the dogs during the afternoon and of Audra playing the violin for them would go on. Her father would have someone else to stay for, he wouldn't leave her again for sure now, doubt would no longer be a problem. She wouldn't be alone anymore, there would be no darkness sorrounding her every step ever again. 

After a few more moments of stunned silence Audra tried to speak, her voice came out weak and breathless when she spoke, eyes filled with tears that were threatening to fall.

"Father..." 

She couldn't even finish, this was ridiculous.

Suddenly there were arms around her and the world outside stopped existing.

She was being held by her father, she was safe and warm at that moment, as if nothing else could reach her and cause her any harm. Inside that little Hannibal cocoon he'd made for her, she heard her father's voice speaking in a gentle and almost reverent sound.

"I've been thinking about moving to another house, a small one near a cliff. It's isolated and safe for at least a while. Abigail would appreciate the view and there is enough field for Will's dogs."

"I didn't know you had another house."

"No?" He pulled away a bit to look at her at this and then spoke again, voice teasing. It was as if he couldn't contain his happiness. "It seems I can still hold secrets from you." She chuckled a bit at this.

"Is there a basement?" Asked the girl.

"Of course, it would've been incomplete without it."

From there on they stayed on that kitchen holding each other and speaking about the future, the plans they would have to make, ways of getting away from the FBI, where they would travel, birthdays they would have to remember, which instrument to teach first to both Will and Abigail and so forth. 

"This is happening father, Will is coming with us. He's chosen us." 

Hannibal smiled before resting his face on top of Audra's head, closing his eyes in utter relief at this.

"Yes, he has." After a few more moments they finally let go of each other, Hannibal went back to cooking and Audra stood near him, taking care not to stay on his way.

"How did you learn of Freddie's death?"

"Jack called a few hours ago requesting my presence for the case since Will couldn't be found."

Audra smiled at this and replied.

"Shouldn't you be there then?"

"They found him so my presence ended up not being needed." The girl hummed a bit after this and said.

"We should prepare to leave this city."

"Indeed, but it's still early let's eat breakfast first and concentrate on celebrations later."

Audra nodded, approached him and gave him a kiss on his cheek before turning and leaving the kitchen.

The family was finally complete.

#

"Orthodontics confirmed, it's Freddie Lounds."

Zeller spoke this while Jack and Will stared at the body on the table, irrecognizable because of the burns. Price and Beverly walked around it, sometimes interveining and taking samples when needed. 

"A little kerosene and fwoomp, +incendiary journalism. If she were burned alive, blood would have boiled out of her mouth." Continued Zeller.

"No scabrous crust on her chin. Dead before the match was struck." Said Price without looking away from the computer, Zeller nodded and complemented.

"Blood already pooled to the lowest points of her body. She'd been dead at least twenty-four hours." 

Jack gave a nod at the informations and shook his head as he looked at the body, something aking to sadness graced his face when he spoke.

"Freddie Lounds's ultimate failing was her inability to keep herself out of her own stories."

Will's voice was the next to be heard.

"Freddie had the longing need to be noticed. She was noticed." 

"Severely-burned bodies tend to split along lines of musculature." Replied Beverly as she pointed to a jagged opening along the corpse's back, when they approached to see it better she continued.

"But this looks like an incision." 

"Cut out her psoas muscles. Looks like he used a hunting knife." Said Zeller walking aroung Beverly to get a better look at the incision.

"Why did he burn her?" Asked Jack.

"How many people has Freddie Lounds burned in her career?" Puffed out Zeller.

"Whoever did this was not striking out against Freddie's exploitative brand of journalism. There is something else." Said Will walking away from the body and towards the wall, where he proceeded to rest his body.

"I can't help you with this Jack." That made the man turn to him quickly, a terrily displeased expresion on his face, when he spoke, his voice was barely contained. 

"You what?"

"I can't help you, there is something strange here and I have no idea what it is." 

Jack gave slow steps towards him at that, the forensic trio had stopped what they had been doing in order to watch what was going on and yet, Will didn't move. 

"This is why you are here, to see what others cannot. That is EXATCLY the point of you being here."

"I'm not saying I can't do it I'm just saying I might need help that's all."

Crawford's shoulders relaxed slightly after this and he gave the empath a nod, already understanding exactly who he would call for help. 

"Well do it quickly then." He turned to walk away, gave a few steps and turned again. 

"I want some actual job happening do you hear me? No distractions." 

How he managed to be teasing in a moment like this Will would never understand, though it was refreshing really.

Specially considering the truth about this particular case.

#

"May I ask where are you going?" 

Hannibal supported his weight on the opened door of Audra's bedroom and watched as the girl got hold of some of her clothes, folded them and put them inside a bag in order. He still felt giddy over the course of things, Will finally accepting who he truly was had been a most welcome surprise and Hannibal felt like he had to fight to concentrate on his usual day to day tasks, it was an uncomfortable situation he had to admit, and yet the mere thought of Will ending Ms.Lounds life, he wondered if the man had been gentle or maybe as aggresive as he'd been with Randall Tier...

"... and... See? That right there." 

Oh Audra had been speaking.

"Forgive me, what were you saying?" The girl rolled her eyes at that and spoke.

"Will is bound to come here and even if he's made his choice, as far as we know, he still doesn't know about me." She turned her body away from him and returned to her task as she continued her speech.

"I think we should give him some time to get used to the idea, so I'm staying in a hotel while he's here." 

"You are right, this choice is already a big step for him, to know about you could make him feel... Betrayed, at least."

"Yes that and... Well..." As she trailed of Hannibal tilted his head to the side and rose his eyebrows before speaking. It was unusual for her to act in such a manner.

"Speak Audra."

"You want him, I see it in your every step. Forgive me father but I'd rather be away while you two are in the same room for now." The smirk on her lips amused him and caused him to retribute it, his voice when he spoke was purposely rough and low.

"Of course, I wouldn't want to traumatize you any further my dear." 

She gave a groan and put her hand over her eyes.

"I did not have to listen to that... " She lowered her head and began mrmuring. "Beprasmis raginis senis..." 

Hannibal laughed and approached the girl, giving her shoulder a slight squeeze and speaking in an amused tone. 

"That was rude." The girl smiled at him and he turned to leave, before exiting the room he turned again and spoke.

"Make sure you have everything you need my dear, I'll be in the kitchen." And with that he left, still smiling to himself, Audra never stopped to surprise him.

He was glad she would be gone. 

On this night Will Graham would _finally_ be his.

#

It was night already and Will stood by Hannibal's doorstep.

He knew this night would be different, the inevitability of their relationship already reaching its peak and there was nothing more to be done other than to mingle, not their minds, that has already been done.

They were meant to consume one another and the only way Will thought they could do it without killing each other would be by... What could he call it? Sex? Love?

He didn't even know anymore, he only knew that he needed Hannibal, this little play has already gone too far with teasing moments that only made their need for each other grow in levels that approached them further and further towards madness. 

Will felt the light weight of the groceries he carried and a small piece of meat, a gift for Hannibal, and his mind wondered back to Freddie Lounds. 

No.

He wouldn't think about her now, he could do that later. 

For now he would enjoy the moment and the man opening the door for him.

"Will, what a lovely surprise. Come in." 

The fact that he pretended they both didn't know this moment was coming amused him a bit, Hannibal had always enjoyed his little games, so Will decided to indulge him on this. He entered the house with a small smile of his own and waited so Hannibal had closed the door so they could continue on towards the kitchen. 

"I brought you something."

"I noticed, luckily I haven't started dinner yet, else your efforts would have been for nought."

Will proceeded to organize his groceries on the counter as soon as they got to the kitchen, he could feel Hannibal's eyes on him during the entire time. 

"I provide the ingredients, you tell me what we should do with them."

The doctor got a hold of the package that contained the meat and as soon as his eyes met it they darkened, he focused them on Will and spoke.

"What's the meat?"

His voice was so different, low and rough, his eyes were mapping Will's face only stopping to focus on his eyes. The empath could feel the atmosfere around them changing, whatever they did now it wouldn't end up being dinner.

"What do you think?"

Apparently whatever play Hannibal had had for this night ended now for the man approached him and stood in front of him for a second before raising his shaking hands towards his face.

There was no wall between Hannibal Lecter and Will Graham in that moment, the empath saw everything , his mind and Hannibal's were one. He knew exactly what the other man was feeling. 

Anger at the lack of his control, the need to seek it and to be gentle, the need to destroy and consume, he was so beautiful in his madness, with an empathy strong enough to become anyone else. 

To become him.

He would cherish this beautiful empath and show him wonders he never dreamed of before. He would introduce him to death and watch as he made it his slave, Hannibal wanted to see Will Graham's becoming and he wanted to be there as well for his falling. 

Will saw it all, he _felt_ it all and he couldn't help but let out a strangled moan at the thought of how much Hannibal wanted him, it was then that finally, _finally_ their lips touched and it was brutal.

Will held onto Hannibal's waist as the man's right hand grabbed at his hair with strength, fingers tangling themselves in his curls as he did so, his other hand held Will's shirt and pulled, making their bodies colide and stay flushed against each other, Graham could feel Hannibal's sex hardening against him and rolled his hips against it. The groan they both let out was loud enough that it echoed around the house, it was then that a sudden thought came into Will's mind. 

"Where's Audra?" He asked breathless after ending their kiss.

Lecter didn't lose time and began kissing at his jaw, slowly trailing down to his neck leaving small bites on his way... Oh how would Will taste he wondered? Would he be sweet or bitter? Would he envelop his body as tightly as he had his mind? 

Will blinked when he realized he had lost himself again inside Hannibal's perspective, the seductive thoughts making him moan and tight his hold on the man's hips as he gave his own a new angle, making their sexes touch each other through now unwelcome clothing.

"She's not here."

Of course he would've thought about sending his daughter away while Will was here, he was in the process of rolling his eyes when a rather strong bite on his neck made his mind return to the present, this touching was perfect.

But enough of this. 

Will used what he remember from his training as a cop and interrupted Lecter's balance making him fall with his back on the floor of the kitchen, he looked as Hannibal stared up at him, the desire in his eyes shifted slightly allowing wariness to invade his eyes. The empath walked on top of Hannibal, with one leg on each side of him and lowered himself, now he was stradling the doctor and whatever wariness there were in his eyes were now gone.

He lowered his face and searched for Hannibal's neck, each lick and bite he left in his way made the other man moan and groan a bit louder. 

"Will... The bedroom..."

"No."

"But..."

"You cook them here." He stopped what he was doing to stare at Lecter's eyes now. 

"This is where you transform them into something worthy, this is where your heart is." He rested one of his hands on Lecter's face at this and when he spoke, his voice sounded gentle and almost reverent.

"I wouldn't want to do it anywhere else other than in the center of who you are."

There was a small moment of stillness before Hannibal somehow changed their positions, settled himself between his legs and grounded his hips on Will's as he kissed the empath at the same time. His hands worked in each button of Will's shirt in a frenzy, giving up in the last moment and chosing to rip it all off of him. 

As soon as his bare back hit the cold floor Will knew this was real and it was truly happening. 

It all seemed like a fight to him, trying to take Hannibal's shirt off while the man insisted on touching his torso, dragging his nails over Will's skin and leaving red marks behind. 

Will couldn't focus, his mind wondered into Hannibal's and he could almost see himself laying on that floor spread out only waiting for Hannibal to ravish him, to be deep inside him until they both lost the point where one began and the other finished. 

"You know..." He looked at the ceiling as he said this, feeling Hannibal lowering his pants quickly alongside his underwear. "I've never been with a man before..." 

Hannibal got a hold of his already aching sex and squeezed, making a groan escape him, with his other hand the doctor tried to remove his own pants, panting slightly as he watched the empath, oh how he wanted to consume him... To mark him so permanently that...

Focus Graham.

"I'll be your first... And last." 

It was possessive.

It was sick and twisted.

Will loved it. 

"Hannibal..."

The man raised his hand to grab something on top of the counter, an oil Will guessed. He didn't know, he couldn't focus and he didn't want to. The feeling of a slick finger over his opening made his instinctively try to close his legs. 

"Trust me Will." 

Hannibal lowered himself enough that it became possible for him to engulf Will's penis with his mouth and that was exactly what he did, the bastard. Will's hips went up on their own and his shaking breaths accompanied the rhythm with which Hannibal twirled his tongue around him, soon that finger went back to his opening and Will just let it happen, far too lost on his pleasure to pay attention to it.

It was... Strange, and it didn't excite him in any way really.

Hannibal let got of his now pulsating member and stared at Will's eyes as he began twirling his finger, making small back and forth movements as he did so.

So beautiful, so unique, he couldn't believe in his luck, that this creature of darkness had come to him and had accepted him, had accepted _himself_ in such a manner... 

Will cried out suddenly, his mind leaving Hannibal's for the moment as the muscles on his belly tightened and he was pulled forward by the strength of it, sharp pleasure traveled through his body in a hot wave. He noticed his eyes were closed and opened them only to see Hannibal already there close to him, looking smug about finding this spot inside him so quickly. 

Will huffed out a small laugh and spoke.

"Thank you medicine."

"Oh the advantages of loving a doctor." Replied Hannibal smiling in an almost silly way.

Will's own smile became gentle at this as he raised his hand to touch Hannibal's cheek, guilt threatened to make itself known to him and he made his best to ignore it, he couldn't think of it now. 

Now he was with Hannibal.

"Oh the advantages of loving you..." His voice was so small as he said this, so gentle and sincere. 

Hannibal looked at him in wonder before leaning in and kissing him just as Will knew he would and he hated himself.

Another finger followed the one already inside him, slippery and hot, going straight for that sweet spot inside him, that sharp pleasure traveled through him again and again, another finger later and another whole different set of feelings took hold. It wasn't long before Will couldn't do anything but squirm, moan and groan as Hannibal fingered him. 

"You... P-please... You now... "

Those fingers left him and the emptiness brought reality back, whatever heavenly feeling he had, in those few seconds Hannibal dared to get away from him, left him and the guilt he'd managed to ignore so far completely engulfed him. 

How could he still lie to this beautiful man that he loved so much? 

And then Hannibal's member was there on his opening, pushing inside insistently and he forgot everything again, focusing his eyes on Hannibal's, watchin as pleasure consumed the man. Inch by inch the man entered him and soon Will was filled with Hannibal. Both men breathed heavily, Lecter was leaving trails of kisses all over the empath's face and Will tried to focus not to lose himself in the intensity of Hannibal's mind.

He failed.

He could imagine the sweet torture of being inside someone hot and tight around him, slippery in just the right way, gently pulsing around him and leaving waves of pleasure in his trail... Oh how he loved this man, he loved Will Graham so much...

Will felt tears on his eyes at the intensity of the moment and gave a small nod and oh... Hannibal began moving.

Such a strange sensation to feel someone getting inside himself like this and feel nothing else but pleasure, sharp and hot blinding his eyes to everything else in the world, there was nothing only Hannibal, his smell, his music... 

He threw his arms around the doctor and felt himself nearing the inevitable end, he didn't want this to end and yet... 

"I love you Hannibal..." 

"As tave labai myliu... Will..." 

And with another nudge on that beautiful spot inside him, Will was coming.

And it was glorious.

His body clenching around Hannibal with strength as he moaned loudly, taking a hold of the other man's hair as he did so.

It didn't take long for Hannibal to come as well, clinging to him with his head burried on the curve of Will's neck and shoulder, breathing with dificulty and spasming gently against him.

For a moment Will felt as if they had become one. 

Hannibal tumbled to the side and fell on the floor beside him, Graham quickly turned his body to him and gave the man an embrace, which was quickly retributed.

"Hi." He said.

"Hello." Gently replied Hannibal.

He couldn't do this, he couldn't pretend this wasn't what he wanted anymore. This is where he belonged, he'd noticed this in the past already and felt foolish for having tried to fight against it.

His mind wondered back to Freddie Lounds, alive and well in his basement at Wolftrap, thinking that she was safe and that she would soon know the identity of the Ripper. Guilt burned his stomach, making him cling closer to Hannibal.

He needed to kill her before Hannibal found out about her.

He didn't want this to end.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yey! I read a time ago that people usually forgot about Will's empathy during sex and I realized that it's true! So I tried to put it there with his mind mingling with Hannibal's and all that, I don't know if I managed to do it but it's there and oh well. 
> 
> Don't worry about the Freddie thing and the Abigail thing, they both will be explained better on the next chapter! Thank you so much for reading! 
> 
> Remember comments, kudos, ideas and critics are always welcome! ♥


	29. O Funeral

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Will and Hannibal wake up together, Freddie's funeral happen and a race begins.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AND FINALLY I UPDATE THIS FIC! It's been crazy with college and all, but here it is! Things are happening and it's getting intense AF! I hope you guys enjoy it. 
> 
> TRANSLATIONS:  
> \- Mylimasis = Beloved.  
> \- Jūs stebina padaras =You astonishing creature.
> 
> Good reading! 
> 
> Disclaimer: I own nothing, only Audra.

"I knew there was something off about you."

"And yet you came here anyway."

"I found what I was looking for."

"You are still alive Freddie, if I were you I would stop talking."

The woman stopped speaking at this, her eyes swiftly traveling around the room searching for ways of running out of there, seeing nothing but walls inside the dark room Freddie felt the first vestiges of fear traveling through her, for the first time the possibility of death entered her mind since she woke up, the cold manner in which Will Graham stared at her as he sat down with his elbows supporting themselves on his knees scared her.

But she wouldn't allow him to notice this.

"No need to be afraid Freddie, I'm not going to kill you."

She scoffed at this and tried to move, her hands, legs and body tied to a chair making it impossible for her to move. Raising her head at him she spoke, keeping control of her voice so it wouldn't waver.

"I'm not afraid."

"I know you are, but that's not relevant. You found something that you shouldn't have."

"You killed that man, Randall Tier." A small smile appeared on his face at that.

"You shouldn't know that name, I suppose you won't let me know how you do?"

She just stared, that got a small chuckle out of him.

"Of course..."

"If you're not going to kill me what then?"

"I have a deal for you."

"You want me to keep quiet about Randall?" The smile left his face at this and that cold and calculating look returned full force.

"What are you prepared to do for the Chesapeake Ripper?"

The fear inside her intensified ten fold at this, could he be...

"I'm not the Ripper." He spoke after a sigh.

Oh, that left another possible answer about this.

"But you know who he is."

"Yes."

If that was true then this was huge, the benefits it brought to her couldn't even be numbered.

Only if it was true.

"How do I know you are not lying?"

"You are a journalist who found a body inside my freezer and you are still alive. If I wanted to kill you or cause you any harm, I would've done this already."

"I don't trust you."

"And I don't expect you to, but we need to work together if we want him to get caught."

She stopped speaking and stared at him, considering.

"Does Jack know about this?"

His face sombered at this and he looked down, after a few seconds he raised his head again and spoke.

"No one at the FBI can know about this, not for now."

"Why?"

"I don't know in whom I can trust." Her eyes narrowed before widening slightly.

"Is the Ripper inside the FBI?"

He didn't answer but his expression had been answer enough, her breath left her and she allowed herself to stare at the wall, astonished. If the Ripper had been inside the FBI during all of this time it could explain why he hadn't been caught yet.

Even the possibility of it being true was already good enough for her and even if it was a lie, it was safer to play along with whatever Will had in mind for now until she had a chance of escaping.

"So... What now?"

"How do you feel about dying?"

And so they got in contact with a person that worked at the orthodontic area the forensic team of the FBI would consult to arrange the falsification she needed and in doing so, proving her death. It surprised Will that she already knew people who would help her in such a manner, but taking in consideration what she wrote it wouldn't be wrong to assume she would need to disappear for a while in some moment of her life. She had no idea how he would obtain the body to pretend it would be her, but she didn't need to apparently.

Everything had been made from that dark room that Freddie suspected to be a basement.

Of course it would be a basement.

After putting the phone inside his pocket and walking away from her, Will spoke.

"I need to keep you here, no one should know about you for now."

"Am I a hostage Mr. Graham?" His serious face stared at her as he answered.

"You cannot leave for now, it's too dangerous. You understand."

"Of course." Said Freddie with a cynical tone, he smiled at her and turned to leave.

"I will come here with more information every day don't worry about this."

"And just how am I suppose to maintain this information? You took all of my equipment away."

"I'm sure you have a very good memory, goodbye Freddie."

Freddie let out a sigh as she watched the man leave the place, still tied to the chair she couldn't move towards the door, couldn't inspect the room, nothing.

She could do nothing.

Well, at least she was still alive.

**-**

**PRESENT**

**-**

Will and Hannibal had already finished dinner and were now sitting at the living room, both together on the sofa. He couldn't stop the guilt anymore, couldn't blind himself with pleasure or lies, as Hannibal looked at his face with something akin to wonder gracing his features, Will felt sick. Each caress felt like a knife on his face, each small kiss delivered to his brow a small torture.

"... could not have given me a more wonderful gift Will."

The empath rose his eyebrows at this, so lost was he to his own thoughts that the present had escaped him.

"Hm?" Hannibal smiled gently at this before speaking.

"I can only wonder what lies inside your mind at this moment to distract you so."

"I'm sorry it's just... What now?"

Lecter smiled one more time before answering.

"We leave. Me, you, Abigail and Audra, I have already prepared a temporary house for us. From there we'll go to Italy, I would love to show you Florence Will."

He was cruel.

Even in his kindness he was cruel.

He couldn't do this, he had to right this wrong now, else he feared for what might happen if he let time go on like this, each second that Will spent here was the second Hannibal could find out about Freddie being alive, if he didn't go now he feared he might not have another chance in the future.

"Florence?"

"Indeed, I spent many of my years there, it was where I became a man, my beginning."

And suddenly he was close, so much closer than before, with a hand caressing Will's cheek as he spoke.

"To share such a fate with you, behold your own beginning at the same place will be a gift beyond measure."

"To walk where you walked, like a living shadow guided by a man who is no longer there."

"I will be there my dear, to guide you and the girls. We are conjoined, but not like man and shadow, you are much more than that now."

Will approached his head to Hannibal's and let their foreheads touch one another, Lecter let out a sweet sigh at this, closing his eyes and speaking.

"You are your own master, you remain because you wish to, because running away from this is the same as running away from life itself. This is who you are Will."

Will smiled a bit at this, whispering with closed eyes as he approached his body to Hannibal's one more time.

"This is who I am..." Faintly he felt Hannibal nodding before closing the distance once more, the kiss now far more tender and slow, they had time and they would enjoy every minute of it.

He would leave to kill Freddie soon.

He just wanted to live this moment for a little bit longer.

Will was on his back with Hannibal on top of him when the good doctor thought it would be a good idea to get away from him by supporting his weight on his hands, as Lecter stared down at him he spoke.

"Will we attend Miss Lounds' funeral?"

Whatever calm Will had felt before left him, it was hard not to allow the other man to notice this and even so he couldn't be sure he had actually succeeded, with a sigh the empath answered, voice calm as he did so.

"Well, we do need to pay our respects don't we?"

"Hm... Have they set the date already?"

"I should occur tomorrow, there wasn't much to be recovered from the body, the only way to even know it was her was through the analysis of her teeth so they can bury her already."

Hannibal stared at him for a moment, unmoving and silent before finally speaking.

"You were careful."

"I had to be." Replied the empath after a shrug. "The first people to be investigated if they caught me would've been you and Audra given the nature of our relationship, possibly even Abigail. I didn't want that."

Lecter smiled at this and lowered himself one more time, promptly putting his head on Will's neck and smelling it softly right before leaving a kiss on it.

"I'm glad."

Will raised his hands and let his fingers travel through Hannibal's hair and they both stayed there, one on top of the other, just holding each other without disturbing the silence with pointless conversation. The empath didn't know for how long they stayed there and he didn't really care, he had other things inside his mind for now.

Tomorrow they would attend Freddie Lounds' funeral together.

Tomorrow Freddie Lounds would die again.

#

He spent the night there of course, waking up besides Hannibal had been strange, the man's appearence to strange to his usual self, almost vulnerable in its untidiness. With his hair going to every direction, his closed eyes and relaxed face as he lay on his belly embracing his pillow, this man killed people, tortured them for his own amusement and yet... I moments like these Will was reminded that nothing was that simple, he was a person as well, painfully human in his needs and maneirisms.

Will allowed his fingers to caress Hannibal's arm gently, the subtle action made the man bury his face on the pillow and make a small sound that had the empath smiling.

Yes, he could get used to this.

"Hannibal?"

Nothing.

What was that thing that Lecter always said when refering to himself and Audra sometimes... He had spoken with him about it... Ah.

"Hey... Mylimasis." (Beloved.)

That head slowly raised and soon Will had a pair of maroon eyes staring at him, a sweet smile on his face.

"Jūs stebina padaras..." (You astonishing creature.)

"Well... I don't know that one." This got a chuckle out of Hannibal as the man extended one of his hand to touch his cheek. Will sighed at that and spoke.

"We need to get up..."

"We do."

None moved.

They just stared at each other for a moment before a sudden noise from downstairs of a door closing caught their attention, it wasn't until Audra's voice was heard that they both relaxed.

"I'm home! And I have Abigail with me!"

Both men sighed at that, whatever feeling of peace they've had so far diminished by the lack of privacy, Hannibal had turned himself and was now laying on his back with one of his arms covering his eyes, Will smiled at that and approached him promptly embracing the man.

"Let's go, the girls are waiting."

"Yes." With one last kiss they both separated and finally left the bed, the girls' conversation could be faintly heard downstairs as the two men dressed, as Will hadn't brought clothes of his own he had to lend Hannibal's and take in the amusement from the man as they noticed how loose his shirt stayed on the empath as well as his pants. After a few teasing moments both men were ready to get down the stairs and meet the girls. Abigail greeted them with a bright smile, whilst Audra smirked as she noticed Will's clothing.

Oh well.

"Hello you two."

"Hello Will, father." Said Audra still smirking at the whole situation, right after Abigail spoke.

"Hey Will, it's been some time right?"

"Yes, it has." They all moved to the kitchen eventually, being all comfortable enough with each other already, they all sat by the counter as Hannibal prepared breakfast.

"I'm sure you all have heard about what happened to Miss Lounds?"

Abigail lowered her head and Audra's eyes instantly went down as a serious expression took hold of her face, both girls nodded and Will felt a pang of guilt at their expressions as they did it. Hannibal continued right after that.

"The funeral will happen this afternoon, we've been invited of course, what I wish to know is who is willing to attend it."

There was silence for a moment before Audra spoke.

"I didn't really know her that much, I don't know how good my presence there would be." She turned to Abigail after she said this and continued.

"Unless you want to go, I would be there for you at least."

"I don't really think it's a good idea for me to show up, thanks though." Replied the Hobbs girl after a smile.

"Will?" The empath turned his head towards Hannibal at that and nodded.

"I'll go."

From there on everything happened fast, they all ate their breakfast together in a calm and confortable silence, they all sat and talked about sweet nothings at the living room and eventually Audra and Abigail left after the conversation, promising to return and have dinner with them after the funeral.

"Are you ready to go?" Said Hannibal to him.

And that's how Will found himself at a cemetery alongside the man, both of them standing on the snow wearing heavy coats, they were mostly obscured by a tree a dozen yards away from the main event, avoiding the mourners and interested. Fortunately they drove on different cars, this way Will had had the chance to think about how he would kill Freddie as soon as he got away from here.

Will noticed a small figure approaching them and soon Alana's gaze could be seen.

"Funeral was long at the chapel and it's long at the graveside."

"I'm here to mourn Freddie Lounds, it's... Strange to be doing so." Said the woman as she positioned herself at their side, Hannibal spoke right after that.

"Indeed, for someone so striking to suddenly die like this..." Will gave an involuntary step towards Hannibal as he saw the mournful expression on his face, Alana raised her hand and gave Lecter's arm a small caress. Will hated himself for how his eyes narrowed at the motion, a sudden possessive feeling taking hold of him.

He sighed as he saw an amused glint in Hannibal's eyes at this, surely Alana missed it as she'd been watching the event from the distance. He made a face at the other man, it was Alana's voice that returned his attention to the present.

"Will, may I speak with you for a moment? In private if you don't mind?" She shot a guilty glance at Hannibal, to which the man nodded and, with one last look at him, walked away towards where he'd parked his car.

"What is it?" Said Graham staring at the woman, she gave a small sigh and replied.

"I wanted to speak with you about your relationship with Hannibal and my reaction to it."

He gave out a heavy sigh at that.

"I'm not going to apologize for anything I said, but... I can see how stable you look already, whatever my opinions are, Hannibal is good for you." Said the woman and oh, wasn't that a surprise.

At his silence she continued.

"I just want this bad thing between us to end and for you to know that I'm here for you."

Huh, would you look at that?

"Thank you Alana."

"Yeah... I've kept you long enough, go. Hannibal must be waiting." They both smiled at each other and parted ways. As soon as he could see Hannibal his smile widened.

"May I ask what she wanted?"

"To say that she still doesn't approve of us, but can see how good you are for me."

"Ah, she won't bother us then."

"Nope."

They smiled.

"I need to go home for a moment before heading to yours, there's something I need to solve." Said the empath, Hannibal gave him a small smile and a nod. 

"If this is about the dogs don't worry, Audra is going to take care of them."

Time stopped for Will.

"What?"

"I called her and as she's on her way to pick up Abigail at the facility, I asked that she passed at your house first to feed the dogs."

Will couldn't breathe, he would have felt delighted at this sweet gesture Hannibal had done if it didn't lead Audra right to the place where Freddie Lounds was now resting very much alive.

As he tried to keep his composture he got closer to the other man smiling, he took a hold of his face and gently kissed him on his lips, it was... Emotional, intense and filled with how much he felt for this man and their new family.

After this, he didn't know if he would be able to do it again.

"Will?"

He noticed, of course he would've noticed.

"You're already taking care of my dogs Hannibal." He spoke with a whisper, the worried expression didn't leave the other man as he watched him, something suspitious still lurked under those kind eyes, but no matter, he had to arrive home before Audra.

"Maybe I'll meet her there then, I really need to get what I'm after, it's a gift after all."

That pulled one last smile from the doctor before he spoke, voice and eyes now filled with affection.

"Then run, I would hate to wait much longer to be close to you again." With one last kiss they parted, Will got inside his car and he did just that.

He ran as fast as he could, driving faster and faster.

Audra would not find Freddie.

Not alive at least.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So that happened, a race to see which one of them arrive first at Will's house and decide what will happen, will Will arrive first and kill Freddie in time? Or will Audra arrive and discover the truth? What would you guys want to happen I'm actually in doubt now so... HELP.
> 
> Thank you so much for reading! Remember ideas, comments and critics are always welcome. ♥


	30. Mizumono - Part 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mizumono.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't really have much to say about this chapter, I'm just hoping for the best now and I hope you guys like it so... Here's to hoping! I know this is slightly smaller than usual, but if I put everything in one chapter it would be gigantic, so I cut this in two parts.
> 
> Good reading!
> 
> Disclaimer: I own nothing, only Audra.

Will practically jumped out of his car as soon as he got home, his heart hammering in his chest as he looked around in search of any car that could be Audra's, when he found none he had no time to feel relief, he ran inside his house and straight to his basement. 

She would be here soon, he had to hurry else she would see Freddie alive. 

It was with that thought that he opened the basement door, ready to walk inside and break Freddie's neck, no ceremony or delay, he had no time for this. One step inside the room and his breathing stopped, dread filled his stomach as it twisted inside his body, his whole body shook with the shock of what he was seeing. 

Freddie was not inside the room, the ropes that had been tying the woman down were scattered all over the floor, but that wasn't what had truly shocked him. 

There was a word written on the wall with what he suspected to be blood, the big letters covering most of it as they dripped to the floor, its message confirmed long forgotten suspitions of his about a certain Lecter and it hurt... Tears were forming on his eyes and in a fit of rage he got a hold of the chair Freddie had been sitting on and threw it on a nearby wall, a rough scream tore its way through his throat as he fell on his knees on the floor, he punched it a couple of times before staring up at the wall and facing the word that described what he was with cruel sincerity. 

**_LIAR_ **

**-**

**SOME TIME BEFORE THIS**

**-**

"Is this really what you listen while driving?" 

"What? You don't like Vivaldi's Spring?" Abigail laughed at this before replying.

"I have nothing against it, but do you and your father only listen to classic music?"

Audra gave out a small sigh at this, they were both currently inside her car driving to Will's home, the call from her father had been a surprise at first, both girls were already near the Lecter's house when she received it, but when she remembered the manner of which her father was treating the empath the surprised feeling left her, of course he would want to stay as close to Will as possible now that he knew he could trust him. 

And who was she to take this happiness from her father? It's been long since she last saw him like that, he was a man carved out of loss, despair and sadness, he deserved whatever happiness he could find. 

So here they were, driving for 40 minutes now to get to Will's house and feed the dogs. 

Another sigh left her before answering Abigail. 

"Usually yes..." They stopped the car thanks to a traffic light and she turned to Abigail. 

"Feel free to change the music if you like."

A slow smirk formed on the Hobbs' lips at that.

"Really?"

They began driving again as the traffic light became green.

"I can handle new music Abigail." She spoke this in a sarcastic tone that made the other girl laugh loudly before taking her phone and connecting it to the car's radio, as soon as the music began Audra spoke. 

"What in the world is that?!"

"Ever heard of Nicki Minaj? Well that's her, it's called Anaconda." Audra noticed Abigail couldn't stop laughing at her and gave out a small chuckle. 

"Well it's.... Something." 

"You hate it!" Said the other girl still laughing and Audra couldn't be happier that they were approaching Will's house now. 

"Yeah yeah, enjoy your victory for now." They both laughed a bit more before Will's house became visible and Abigail spoke.

"It's all dark there." 

"Let's just take care of the dogs and go, else we'll be later for dinner." It took far too long for them to get here, the return trip could take the same time, the more they lingered here, the more time they would waste. So both girls got out of the car as soon as it parked and approached the house, Abigail busied herself with finding the key Will kept hidden... Somewhere, she didn't really remember, when her phone rang again.

"Hello?"

"Audra, I have a favour to ask of you." Her father's voice answered her. "Will reacted in an... Interesting manner when I mentioned you would be going there, I need you to... "

"Check?"

"Yes, it would put my mind at ease if you did." She could hear the nervousness in his voice, rarely her father wished his instincts were wrong and she knew there was nothing more he wanted at the moment than exactly that. 

"I'll do it."

"Do it quickly, he's heading there as we speak." 

"Very well, goodbye father." She ended the call after saying this, right after that Abigail appeared with the key.

"He hid it well, come on let's get inside."

"Father wants us to look around, see if we find anything strange." Abigail furrowed her eyebrows before speaking.

"Did Will do something?" Audra didn't turn to her as she got inside, but she did speak.

"I don't know." 

And their search began, as Audra looked over the rooms as fast as she could, Abigail fed the dogs and took care of them. The Lecter girl was inside Will's bedroom when she heard Abigail's voice coming from downstairs.

"Did you check the basement?" 

Basement? 

She didn't even know Will had a basement until now. The girl ran down the stairs and found Abigail standing in front of a discreet door near the backdoor of the house, when she opened the door a set of stairs could be seen leading to another door and suddenly Audra was afraid, if Will was indeed hiding something, what was it? He was heading there so she had no time to think about it, she felt her heart hammering inside her chest as she practically ran down the stairs towards that door, it was locked of course, but as soon as she tried to open it a voice came from the other side.

"Will?"

Both girls stopped moving at that and Audra could feel her body begin to shake, she stared at the floor for a small second without moving before giving two steps back from the door and kicking it with all she had.

It had to be wrong, she had to be hearing things, Will wouldn't do this... Not now when they finally had each other, they were together, all of them. He wouldn't destroy their family.

He wouldn't betray them, so why would he lie about this? Why was Freddie on the other side of that door?

No.

Freddie couldn't be inside that basement, she just... Couldn't.

The door wasn't opening, no matter how much she kicked it and a frustrated noise came our of her throat, Audra stopped when she felt a hand on her shoulder, when the girl turned there must have been something wild on her face for Abigail gave a small step away from her, a worried expression on her face before she spoke. 

"Let's do it together." Audra let out a shaky breath and nodded, both girls backed away from the door and after a few fast steps kicked with with strength and finally it opened. And soon as they got inside the room and...

Freddie Lounds was sitting on a chair in the middle of it. 

No, no, no, no...

Abigail's hands flew to her mouth as the girl stared in shock at the redhead and Audra felt her whole body shaking as she struggled to breathe, the tears that had formed on her eyes before now traveled freely across her face, Will had lied to them, had made them believe he was something he was not. To what end she still didn't know, to send her father to prison? She doubted it, she couldn't understand it, why would he do this? What was happening?

"Audra? Abigail? Oh my god I'm so happy to see you girls, it's been hell I'm just... " Freddie began speaking, the crying was fake, the pain and suffering were fake and Audra felt her blood boiling inside her, she wanted to kill this woman, to kill Will for having deceived them and transform him into...

She stopped herself and breathed, the shaking of her body diminished a little, but nothing could be done about her tears... She had to play along, just like her father had taught her. 

"Freddie... Did Will do this to you?" She spoke this while approaching the woman quickly to take the ropes off her. Abigail watched for a second before their eyes met and she saw understading wash over the girl and she approached as well to help. 

"He did, I've been here for days. We need to leave before he arrives, he's insane. Speaking nonsense about the Ripper..." It would have been amusing to watch as Freddie tried to manipulate them in any other situation but this one, Audra gave another sigh and spoke to Abigail. 

"Take her to the car, let's get her out of here." After a nod coming from the other girl, Freddie got up with shaky legs and walked out of the basement with her, leaving Audra alone in the basement.

The girl just stood there for a moment, some nonsense about the Ripper Freddie had said... Will had promised her the Ripper, he had promised her Audra's father. 

As fast as she could, the girl ran up the stairs and to the kitchen, got a hold of a knife and returned to the basement, once there she approached the wall and held the knife on top of her hand. Will was about to learn the truth about her, and it would be as cruel to him as it had been for her to learn the truth about him. With that thought in mind Audra cut her hand, not deep enough that she wouldn't be able to play the violin anymore, but enough that the blood now ran freely out of her. 

Writing the word 'liar' on the wall with her own blood seemed like a good message for now, he would try to find them after this. 

And she would be waiting. 

**-**

**PRESENT**

**-**

When Hannibal opened the door earlier that evening he certainly hadn't been waiting to see his daughter's face covered in dried tears and Abigail's shocked and slightly pale face, but most of all he hadn't been expecting to see Freddie Lounds, alive and well with them. 

"Dr. Lecter, I understand how shocking this must be to you, but if we could talk I could explain the situation... And the truth about Will Graham." The woman spoke, her whole figure screamed care and gentleness but he knew better, this was a viper he was inviting into his house. 

Only... His mongoose had failed him and he'd have to deal with her by himself. 

His mongoose... Something inside his chest felt like it was being ripped apart as he thought about Will, the man had lied to him. Oh what a dangerous thing it was to give a man all of what he wanted, only to take it all away. What else had been a lie he wondered, every sweet caress, gentle kiss and small secrets whispered between them came onto his mind and everything got worse, Hannibal's love had been used against him and now not only he was in danger, but also Audra and possibly even Abigail. 

The only question he had in mind as Freddie babbled in front of him as they sat on a sofa at the living room was why. Was Jack truly not aware of this? Had that been a lie as well? 

Hannibal knew nothing of Will Graham he noticed, the only thing he knew for certain was that he was a cruel man covered in darkness. A sad smile found its way to Hannibal's lips at that thought, how ironic that that which he's fought so hard to bring out in the empath would turn on him? 

"He convinced me he knew the identity of the Ripper, that he was inside the FBI all this time... I still don't know if that's true or if he's the Ripper himself." Said Freddie and that caught his attention.

He hated himself for the small flutter of love that burst inside him, still Will had lied for him, had protected them... But if that was the case, why had the man done this? How long would he extend this lie had Audra not discovered the journalist? 

No, Hannibal wouldn't allow feelings to blind him again. He'd only felt such suffering when his sister had died and still such intensity surprised him, he'd failed and now was the time to correct this. 

"I see... Never I would've believed Will to be capable of such things had I not the proof in front of me. I will make you some tea so you can calm down, please wait here." And off he went, Abigail gave him a significant look when they crossed paths and soon the girl went to the living room to sit by Freddie's side and keep an eye on her. 

Audra was in the kitchen when he arrived, she had washed her face but as her still swollen eyes looked at him and her lips trembled slightly Hannibal opened his arms to the girl and soon they were hugging. 

So lost in his own suffering that he'd almost forgotten about how Audra would feel about this, when she spoke in their mother tongue her voice was low and rough. 

"I'm going to kill him." 

Hannibal felt shivers running down his spine at this, he didn't want Will dead, he wouldn't allow it. He had to suffer somehow, of that he had no doubt, but death was far too definitive and he wouldn't want to live in a world without Will Graham on it. The girl sounded so certain that he suddenly felt afraid he'd have to do something against her to stop her. 

There was a sudden knocking on his front door and both Lecters looked at each other, a silent battle between their similar eyes, one wishing for death and blood while the other wished to trade carefully in this situation, avoiding death if possible. Much was at stake here and whatever happened, Hannibal, Audra and Abigail had to leave this city tonight.

The noise coming from the front door continued until Will's voice could be heard saying his name in panic and Hannibal's heart shattered even more as he listened to it, with one last look at Audra's face he turned and walked towards the living room. Freddie's eyes were wide as the woman stared at the door, Abigail silent by her side. 

"Dr. Lecter you can't open that door, don't let him in." Hannibal said nothing, only walked behind the woman, got a hold of a metal ornament he had on top of a small low table and hit her head with it. Abigail jumped with surprise and walked away from him with wide eyes, he ignored her and walked to the front door. 

Now they could... Talk about this without interruptions.

Carefully controling his expressions Hannibal gave out one last sigh and opened the door, finally facing the empath after all of this began. Their fates would be decided tonight and for the first time in a long while, Lecter felt control slipping away from him.

This would be interesting to say the least, but for now he only smiled and spoke.

"Hello Will."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just want to make one think clear, THERE WILL BE A HAPPY ENDING! This fic will be far longer than I expected it to be if things proceed the way I think it will, so what did you guys think?  
> Remember that any ideas, critics and comments are welcome. Thank you so much for reading this, I hope you guys enjoyed it. (It was a pain to write this one, for various reasons.)


	31. Mizumono - Part 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mizumono.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally.  
> I have to admit this was REALLY hard to write, I couldn't find a way to make thing work without making sense until I thought of this, and even so I don't really know if it's good enough so I'll just have to trust my gut. I really hope you guys like this chapter, I listened to the Aria during all the time I was writing this lol 
> 
> Anyways, good reading! 
> 
> TRANSLATION:  
> \- Man reikia jam sąmonės. = I need him unconscious.  
> \- Mylimasis. = Beloved.
> 
> Disclaimer: I own nothing only Audra.

Relief washed over him as he watched Hannibal opening the door smiling at him, he hadn't left him, Will still had a chance to fix this. He knew Audra must have already brought Freddie here, if the woman was alive or dead he didn't know, but it didn't matter. Even the thought of his girl acting like this made something clench inside his chest... The betrayal he felt in that moment could not be described in words, though he couldn't say he was also surprised, it had been naive of him to believe Hannibal when the man had said the girl hadn't been involved in anything.

"Please come in." Said Lecter to him as he stepped aside. 

And just like that he knew Hannibal was planning something, the sense of dread returned and Will didn't move for a moment, he stood there watching the other man warily. With slow steps he finally entered the house, his suspicion made him turn his back to the wall and wait for the other man to walk in front of him, the last thing he needed at the moment was Hannibal Lecter walking behind him. 

As Lecter began to guide him to the living room Will noticed a blood stain on the man's back, staining his shirt in its existence, on an impulse the empath spoke. 

"Are you hurt?" As soon as those words left his mouth he cursed himself, now wasn't the time to act on his feelings. 

Hannibal had stopped his walking though and turned his head to stare at him, there was something almost pained in his eyes, it only lasted for a small instant before the neutral mask he hadn't used with Will in a long time returned full force. 

"Audra has a cut on her hand, I am about to tend to it in a moment." Answered Hannibal to him and oh. 

Audra had a cut on her hand. 

He could easily see it, Audra cutting her own hand and writing the message on his wall with her own blood, it hadn't been Freddie's as he'd thought before and that only meant the woman was probably still alive. 

He was sure this would change in a few moments. 

They finally arrived at the living room and the first thing Will saw was Freddie, lying on the couch uncontious, a small noise caught his attention and he turned his head towards the kitchen. For a second he saw the white stag there, standing tall and proud before he blinked and Audra's figure presented itself and Will's heart broke once more. 

Her swollen eyes stared at him, empty in a manner he hadn't imagined the girl to be capable of and yet there was an anger there that she obviously couldn't control letting out, his eyes caught the sight of the blood dripping from her hand onto the floor before getting distracted by...

Abigail?

There was no way of hiding the surprise on his face as he saw the girl. 

She knew, after all this time she knew and there she was, standing beside Audra looking at him in a nervous and almost guilty manner, her eyes would frequently move between him and one of the Lecters and this made Will realize he had to start acting fast.

In this moment Will was prey. 

Hannibal was a hunter and he knew that already, but Audra had been a mistery so far, even when he'd thought about the possibillity of her being a murderer like her father in the past he'd never thought about what kind she would be. 

Now he knew, she was as much a fisher as him and she had lured him here perfectly. 

He gave a step towards the couch and watched as Audra's eyes promptly followed it, body tensing slightly as he did it. 

Yes, the girl wanted to kill him. 

Hannibal though... He surprised Will by watching Audra instead, expression closed to the world so tightly that even his empathy couldn't managed to get a good read out of him. Will saw his advantage when Hannibal walked towards the girl, as the man extended his hand and got a hold of her cut hand and examined it, Will entered his mind and sought out anything that could help him to get out of this alive if he could and with Hannibal if possible.

Amongst the screams and blood, deep inside his mind he'd found peace and quiet, a high level of control and patience, he'd found Hannibal Lecter, he'd found the Ripper and had allowed that to wash over him, to change and consume what he was. With one last breath Will began to speak.

"You were not suppose to find out about her like this." His voice was calm due to the Ripper's influence, due to Hannibal's influence.

"Oh?" Hannibal's left eyebrow lifted at that, he hadn't let go of Audra's hand yet but he did guide the girl towards a nearby armchair, as soon as she sat he grabbed a first aid kit that Will suspected he'd gotten before he arrived and began to clean it before doing the stitches. 

"A... Misconception of my part, I should've known to be more careful with such a gift." 

Hannibal remained in silence, having almost finished the stitches on Audra's hand, it was her who spoke, voice cold.

"This won't work, stop lying." 

"You think I am lying?" 

As soon as those words left his mouth the girl rose up from the armchair, ignoring Hannibal's work on her hand she approached the empath, Will's eyes widened as he saw the raw emotion on the girl's face, the cold mask was gone, her control lost as she invaded his personal space and looked into his eyes. When she spoke her voice trembled slightly and he noticed more tears sneaking their way into the girl's eyes.

"You _betrayed_ us, we were suppose to leave but we waited for you, we couldn't leave without you... We couldn't..." Her lips trembled now, brows heavily furrowed as she took a breath to continue but was interrupted by Hannibal instead.

"Audra..." She looked at him and watched as her father walked towards her, he took her hand and finished the stitching quickly, with a gentle sad voice he spoke. 

"Calm yourself mylimasis." 

And with that he turned to Will, no mask, no wall, nothing on his face, only heartbreak and sadness, for the life they could've had together as a family, for the love he still felt for Will and for the betrayal he felt. He gave small steps towards him and Will felt everything crumble to the ground then, the Ripper's calm left him as well as his coldness, his breathing increased and his chin trembled lightly as he stared at Hannibal's eyes, the man now in front of him close enough that he could smell him. 

None of them had been prepared for this, whatever plan any of them had had for this night had already been forgotten and overcomed by such strong emotions. From the corner of his eye he saw Abigail approaching Audra and putting one hand on the girl shoulder in support, tears now molded both girls' faces.

It was over, he knew that and the pain he felt could not be described, he'd ruined it in his stupidity and now he didn't know how to fix this... 

A small groan could be heard coming from the couch and everyone turned towards it only to see that Freddie had begun to wake up. The woman took her hand towards her own head and made a pained face for a second before looking at them, her eyes widened as soon as she focused on Hannibal and Will standing close together. 

"It's you... You're the..." But she couldn't finish. 

Hannibal was on her in a second, hands lifting her up from the couch holding firmly on her hair, she flailed and thrashed as Lecter positioned her in a way that he was now practically embracing her from behind, she inhaled and readied herself to scream, but it was Will who stopped that from happening. With quick and long strides the empath approached the woman and gave a quick precise punch on her throat, he watched as she struggled to breathe, her panicked eyes staring at him as she did so. 

Hannibal's hand moved then and he took a small knife out of his pocket, when he positioned the knife onto Lounds' neck tears streamed down on her face, she couldn't scream, she couldn't fight, she could only wait for the inevitable end. Will quickly moved to avoid the blood as Hannibal began to cut her flesh, the movement precise but slow, the knife had gone deep into her flesh and as soon as he was done he dropped the woman on the floor. 

She was still alive, her breathing polluted by her choking sounds as she drowned in her own blood. Will stared for a small second before raising his eyes towards Hannibal who stared back at him with a wistful expression, he could see how pleased Lecter was at his help with Freddie, but he could also see that his betrayal hadn't been forgotten. 

Freddie became quiet all of a sudden and a small sob could be heard. It was Abigail, the girl had positioned herself behind Audra who looked at them both, sadness and sorrow filling her face. 

It was then that Will felt Hannibal's hand on his neck and the point of the knife on his belly. 

He quickly took a hold of the other man's hand, stopping him, and spoke. 

"The FBI doesn't know about you, if you do this they'll know." His voice shook and broke, he stared back at Hannibal's eyes only to see tears streaming down the man's cheeks, he could feel his own tears wetting his face as he continued. 

"Don't do this to the girls, don't make them go after you... Please Hannibal, don't let the girls become a target." 

The doctor let out a small chuckle at this and spoke, trying to control the trembling of his voice as he did and failing. 

"A place was made for all of us, together." He let go of the knife then, its sharo noise filled the room as it hit the ground, and took a hand to Will's head, caressing his hair as he continued. 

"I wanted to surprise you with a new life, to show you a new world and you... Wanted to surprise me."

Will shook, clinging to Hannibal and forcing himself to maintain his eyes opened to stare at his face, he didn't know what would happen, this could very well be the last time he'd see him.

"I let you in, I let you know me and my family, I made you a part of what we are. I let you see me."

"You wanted to be seen." Replied Will almost in a whisper, Lecter gave a small sad smile at this and answered.

"By you my dear. I've given you a rare gift, but you didn't want it, not until it was too late for us."

"Didn't I?"

Hannibal kissed him then, just a press of lips, gentle in its innocence and tortuous in its meaning. As soon as he pulled back from the empath he spoke in a grave tone. 

"Man reikia jam sąmonės." 

Will couldn't understand it and before he could say something Hannibal spoke again.

"I love you, Will." 

He didn't see her in time, only a fast movement on his side before he turned and saw Audra there, the girl raised her hand quickly in his direction and suddenly he felt a strong pain on his head.

His world turned to black.

#

Will covered himself with the covers and burrowed his face on the pillow under his head and gave a sigh, so comfortable was he now that getting out of the bed wasn't even an option, but he could feel the sun on his face coming through the window and he opened his eyes. A few seconds passed and suddenly everything returned to him. 

Freddie's death, Hannibal, Audra and Abigail standing in the living room, the betrayal and the sadness and he lifted himself up only to see that he was in Hannibal's room, laying on his bed with a light pain on his head but other than that he was fine. 

Will looked around the room and noticed for the first time he was alone.

Dread filled him then and he almost jumped out of the bed and out of Hannibal's room. He called for Hannibal, Audra and Abigail in each room he entered, he called for them as he ran down the stairs and entered the kitchen. When he arrived at the living room he noticed that Freddie's body was gone as well as the blood that had been on the floor. It was as if nothing had happened. 

They were gone. 

He was alone. 

He didn't cry, he didn't scream or trembled. Will felt nothing but emptiness, he felt hollow and incomplete. 

There was no evidence against Hannibal of that he was sure, no trail, nothing. He couldn't ask for Jack's help in tracking the man down since he couldn't use the FBI resources for personal reasons. There was nothing to be done at the moment, only in the future. 

With one last look at the house Will turned his body towards the entrance, as soon as he got to the door though, he noticed something that hadn't been there on the previous night. 

A vase of flowers filled with Sweet Williams surrounded by purple Hyacinth and a single red blooming rose at the center. 

_Sweet William, forgive me, I love you._

That is what the flowers meant and that is when he decided. 

No matter how long it would take, now matter how, he would find them. 

They would be together again. 

With that thought inside his head he finally left the house. 

#

"Jus d’orange. L’eau. Champagne." The stewardess spoke as she walked through the seats of the plane. Receiving no answer and simply continuing. 

"Jus d’orange. L’eau. Champagne." A hand raised and she approached him. 

Hannibal politely took the glass of champagne.

"Merci."

With a smile the woman turned to the two girls sitting close to the man, offering the champagne to one at the time.

"Madame?"

Audra was the first to answer. 

"Merci, non." To which Abigail answered the same thing right after her. 

They said nothing, masks in place as if they were all content and happy, all ignoring the searing pain they felt curling inside their hearts. Audra looked quickly at Abigail and when she noticed the girl was staring at the clouds out of the window she turned her gaze to her father, he retributed it weakly and she saw the raw pain there. 

She extended her hand to him in silence and he took it. 

They were going to Italy now, to Florence to start anew, together as an incomplete family. 

Of course... She knew this wasn't over. 

She'd just have to wait to see what would happen next.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So that happened and we're officially into season 3 territory, yey!  
> Seriously though did you guys like this chapter? I'm really anxious with this one, I don't know if it worked but I tried.  
> This is where I took the information over flower languages: http://thelanguageofflowers.com/ 
> 
> Remember that any critics, ideas and comments are always welcome, thank you o much for reading this! ♥


	32. Interlúdio

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hannibal, Audra and Abigail are in Italy, loose ends are tied and Will has to deal with those who remained, including himself.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A brief interlude, now we enter the season 3 arch of the story! 
> 
> These are the songs that Audra plays during this chapter:  
> \- Nocturne: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VvVX-6zb5N8  
> \- Valse Sentimentale: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rUuusqy50yk
> 
> And this is the picture of the house Hannibal and the girls are living in: http://casaintoscana.com/upload/section1006/gallery/thumbs/cr-740x460-casa_in_toscana_real_estate-10.jpg
> 
> Good reading!
> 
> Disclaimer: I own nothing regarding Hannibal, I only own Audra.

Hannibal watched the bright blue sky outside the grand rounded glass door to the living room of their new house in Firenze with a glass of wine on his hand, the soft wind made the trees outside bend slightly, he could see a few people in the distance working on a vineyard, their movements blurred by how far they were. 

They had arrived here a few of days ago and had settled in the house Hannibal had bought for them months before this, on happier days when he still thought Will would be there with him. 

Audra's violin could be heard from inside the house, the haunting and sad notes from Chopin's Nocturne invaded his ears and he let out a sigh. The girl had been incredibly affected by Will's betrayal, far more than he could've anticipated, he had clearly underestimated how deeply she felt for the man. 

He had underestimated how deeply _he_ would feel for the man after all, so he wasn't surprised.

He knew Abigail would be there with her, he himself would be there but he needed a moment. Since they arrived in Italy the three of them would spent every moment together, giving each other support after what had happened, finding excuses not to think about it and putting an end to every loose end each of them still had in Baltimore. 

Abigail sent an e-mail to Alana explaining the situation, since the woman had already cleared her from the facility (another surprise he hadn't had the chance to tell Will) there would be no problem for her to leave the country, the message served as a courtesy, nothing more. 

Audra had organized for all of her belongings to be sent to Firenze at their new address and already explored the vineyards around their house, as it stood slightly away from the city, Hannibal had no problems with her wondering by herself in whatever time she pleased. 

That left only him and... He hadn't done a thing. 

Hannibal chuckled at the thought. So lost was he in his own grief that he hadn't even thought about his patients, Alana, Bedelia or Jack. 

The music from inside the house finally ended, but soon the girl began to play once more. 

Valse Sentimentale.

He felt a lone tear dance its way down on his cheek and quickly rose his hands to wipe it, how often did he cry now that the movement became almost automatic? 

He'd need to do something about it, but later, now he had some loose ends to tie, in silence he finished his wine and entered the house, taking advantage of the fact that Audra still played in her bedroom with Abigail there with her, Hannibal approached the phone and made the call, he didn't want her here while he spoke. He didn't have to wait long until they picket it up.

"Hello Jack."

#

Will lay on his bed staring at the ceiling, lost inside his memories of happier days, of Audra's laughing, Abigail's sweet and kind smile and Hannibal's gentle touch. So lost was he in his own mind that he hadn't noticed his phone ringing, it was an effort to turn his head and look at it, as much as it was an effort to do anything else. 

He had tried to track Hannibal on his own but had had no success, he knew Hannibal's plan for them, he had tried to follow that trail but even when they had been together the man had been vague and Will ended up with close to no information at all, besides that any search he might initiate was always interrupted by Jack and another crime scene, it was good in a way, to be able to ignore the deep grief he felt inside him rather than be swallowed whole by it and concentrate on something familiar. 

Will felt like he was in pieces, he returned to his old habits now that he'd lost Hannibal, he couldn't eat, his nightmares were even worse and he got even more closed off to everyone else around him and... 

And the phone kept ringing on his side.

With a sigh Will finally raised his hand and got it. 

"Hello?"

"Will." Of course it would be Jack, Will didn't even wait for the man to speak again before speaking.

"Just give me the address and I'll meet you there."

"There is no crime this time, this is about Hannibal." 

Will shot up on his bed, wide eyes and heavy breathing, again he ignored whatever the other man would say and just replied.

"I'll be there." With that he ended the call, got up from his bed and left the house. He didn't take a shower, he didn't get his coat, he did nothing he would've done in a normal situation, he just entered his car and drove to Baltimore as fast as he could. This was the first time in days that he'd heard the man's name outside of his own mind and hallucinations, his heart was hammering inside his chest, he almost couldn't breathe so nervous that he was. 

Hannibal's name was the only thing he could think about while he drove and arrived at the place.

Jack was sitting on his chair when he arrived at his office, panting from the running he'd done from the parking lot to here. 

"What about Hannibal, Jack?" The man said nothing, he just stared at him with a serious face before pointing at the chair in front of his desk, with a strong tone he spoke. 

"Sit." 

Will did, but kept on looking at the other man impatiently. 

"Would you like to explain why one of our most highly esteemed consultants is not available anymore?"

Will's shoulders sagged a bit before he answered, voice small.

"Hannibal left, Jack."

"Yes, he told me that." At this Will's head raised fast and he stared at the other man with wide eyes and slightly opened lips. 

"He... Jack, where..." He never got to finish his sentence, for Jack interrupted him.

"He also told me not to reveal his whereabouts to you, which is why I called you here. What happened Will? What did you do?"

That question hit him like a knife. 

Will lowered his eyes and diminished his whole posture before answering, voice small and sad. 

"I betrayed him."

Jack's eyebrows got up on his face as surprise invaded his features, he got up from his chair and walked around his desk, standing in front of Will's chair he sat on his desk before asking, voice more calm and slightly sympathetic.

"What happened? Did you cheat on him or something like that?" Will's chuckle when it came was wrapped around a sob before he raised a hand and covered his eyes with it, his other elbow he supported on his knee when he bent his body forward. Oh Jack... When he spoke, his voice shook slightly. 

"In a manner of speaking yes... He trusted me, he gambled everything he had on me and I... Destroyed it all." He gave a small sigh trying to control his breathing before continuing. 

"I betrayed him Jack, in more ways than one but this time... It was enough for him to leave me behind."

Jack watched in silence, after a moment the man let out a heavy sigh, rose from where he was and put ona hand on Will's shoulder in support, the empath noticed how the other man had nothing to say, how his shoulders were stiff before Crawford interrupted his thoughts with his words. 

"Give it time, things will sort themselves out."

"Jack, if you know..."

"I'm sorry Will, I don't really know what happened between you two, but I can't betray the trust of a friend." Will gave a small nod and rose from his chair, he walked outside the office and towards the exit when he saw Alana near it speaking with someone, a student probably. 

As soon as the woman saw him her expression hardened, she spoke something for the student and started to walk in his direction. He got no chance of speaking anything before she began. 

"I thought Hannibal would be the one to do something, I thought he would force more boundaries than you would be comfortable to let him." Her voice calmed down after this, but he could still feel her anger in it, protectiveness over a dear old friend. 

"I would have never thought you would be the one to hurt him Will, he didn't give me details, but I could hear it on his voice, whatever it was, it was bad." She breathed deeply and closed her eyes before continuing. 

"I'm not here to make you feel worse, I can see how this has affected you. But know that I'm really disappointed Will." With that the woman walked around him and away. 

Will just stood there, surprise still staining his face. 

Hannibal had called Alana as well. 

They all knew about him, he was fine and alive somewhere, he'd called Jack, Alana and God knows who else and Will still had no idea where he was, the bitter feeling of jealousy he felt about this whole situation spread over him, mingling with his sadness and anger. 

With no other thought inside his mind besides his anger towards his closest friends and towards himself, Will walked to the parking lot and to his car.

He had to fix this. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There you go, now from here we go towards season 3! I AM SO EXCITED YOU GUYS HAVE NO IDEA I LOVE SEASON 3 TOO MUCH OH MY GOD.
> 
> Thank you so much for reading! Remember that any idea, critic or comment is always welcome, if you want to leave kudos that would be awesome as well. ♥


	33. Uma Nova Fase

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A message is left for Will. Audra, Hannibal and Abigail are enjoying their time in Italy and a new person appears.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AND FINALLY THIS IS UPDATED! Ugh I'm free of college and now I actually have time to write my fics, this chapter was REALLY hard to write and really fun as well, because ANTONY!
> 
> By the way, I have no idea if his name is Anthony or Antony, so I followed the Script and wrote Antony since that's how it's written there. 
> 
> Oh man I hope you guys like this, I'm really sorry for how long it took me to update this, I'll be quicker now that I have more time. 
> 
> Good reading! ♥
> 
> Disclaimer: I own nothing regarding Hannibal, I only own Audra.

Will was frustrated. 

Hannibal had been gone for days now and he still hadn't had a chance to look for the man, his mind felt like water, he felt unstable and alone like never before. Every place he visited or just entered reminded him of the other man, he would constantly trip over Audra's and Abigail's fishing tools in his house, hell he'd even called Hannibal's house once to ask why the girls didn't show up on a friday for their fishing day. The small gifts he would find in different rooms of his place plagued him, the different aftershave Lecter had insisted on buying to him was still inside his bathroom and he refused to use anything else other than that, certain shirts and suits that Hannibal had bought him in hopes to make him dress better, an apron that he'd left in Will's kitchen...

 _"There is no point in taking it back my dear Will, I'm here often enough aren't I?"_ He had said, Will had had no idea how much this would mean to him now that the man was gone. 

Whenever he finally managed to organize his mind Will tried to search for him, he had entered Hannibal's house and searched the place, anything would be useful at this point. He had Hannibal's words in his head whenever he searched the place, the plan for them to leave together and live as a family. 

_"We leave. Me, you, Abigail and Audra, I have already prepared a temporary house for us. From there we'll go to Italy, I would love to show you Florence Will."_

He had no idea where this temporary house was, if it was in the country or outside of it, and nothing he'd found in Hannibal's house helped in this case, no clue whatsoever about the place, he had no idea where to start. The only certain place he had was Italy. 

Florence. 

He would've loved to have Hannibal show him Florence.

But had he left the country already? 

His and Hannibal's mind had started to mingle, he was suppose to know the answer to this question, he had seen the man and he was certain that he knew him better than he knew himself, so why was it so hard for him to determine Lecter's steps? Was his mind still in shock for what had happened? Was he distracted by the fact that he had been left behind? That everything had been his own fault? 

Will let out a sigh when his thoughts were interrupted by his phone ringing. 

That was another reason why he never had the time to search for the other man, between his classes, Jack's insistent calls and his struggling mind, Will barely had time for anything much less search for Hannibal. 

He wondered sometimes if Jack wasn't doing it on purpose. 

"Yes?"

"Will, we have another scene I think it's the Ripper." Will's heart skipped a beat at that. 

"Send me the address, I'm coming over." As soon as he said that he ended the call and went to his car. 

If that was indeed a Ripper scene, it would mean that Hannibal was still in the country, he might have left something behind and... No. 

He wouldn't be so careless, Hannibal wouldn't kill someone so soon after leaving Will behind unless he wanted Will to follow him, to know where he is and to go after him. Jack had to be wrong, the Ripper didn't want Will to find him, unless... Unless he was trying to deceive the empath, guide him towards another path, away from where he truly is. 

But how would he have left the body there unless he was there?

Will let out a sigh, he wouldn't know unless he actually saw the scene.

#

It was strange, the crime scene wasn't recent as Will had expected, the body was inside a small cabin in the middle of nowhere, very much like Garret Jacob Hobbs' cabin. It had already decomposed to a significant degree making it difficult for them to identify facial features by naked eye.

"It's not fresh." Said Will as he walked around it.

"No, this body was found this morning, but I'm positive he died at least two weeks ago." Answered Beverly to him, the woman had been crouching besides the body to analyse it. Brian was there with her taking pictures of the scene and Zeller was nowhere to be seen. 

Disappointment filled him as he watched it all, Hannibal would never be this inelegant, he wouldn't allow time to stain his art in this manner. Besides, there was no feeling in this, nothing besides mundane anger, the body carelessly thrown onto the floor stared back up as Will and he only felt sorry for the fact that the victim hadn't suffered in the right manner, if so that'd mean his family had been here. 

Will took off his glasses and stared at the floor for a moment, it was in that moment that Jack approached him and spoke. 

"This is not the Ripper body." Hope flashed inside Will as he raised his head quickly. 

"What?" Jack started to walk towards the stairs that led to the second floor, Will promptly followed. As they walked, Jack spoke.

"That body was found by mere accident by a young couple as they ran in panic because they found this." Both men stopped as soon as they reached the second floor and Jack pointed towards the wall, the sight that met Will's eyes made his heart stop. 

There stood a young girl, very mall of america, mounted on antlers that were connected to the wall, her head was being held by hooks, thrown back with her eyes were opened as if she had been staring at the ceiling, there was blood around them that slowly made its way down her cheeks, as if the girl had been crying blood. There were two precise cuts on her abdomen, clearly someone had taken at least two organs out of her, but that wasn't what stole Will's breath away.

Her hands were cupped and extended in front of her body, like her head they were being held up by hooks connected to the ceiling, on them rested the girl's heart, pierced by three knives much like the tarot card called Three of Swords. 

What it meant? 

Painful separation, sorrow heartbreak, grief, rejection... At least how it was positioned on her hands.

After a quick breath to calm himself, Will spoke. 

"Can you ive me a minute Jack?"

"Of course, Zeller with me." Oh? Will hadn't even noticed the man's presence in the room. 

As soon as the door closed, Will closed his eyes and allowed the pendulum to swing. 

\- x - x - x -

_The girl is crying, loudly screaming for help. I am not bothered, there is nowhere else for her to go and no one to hear her cries, there is only her and me._

_Just how I planned it._

_I waste no time in mounting her on the antlers on the wall, an easier task than it had been to collect the antlers themselves. I watch as panic surge inside her eyes, never had I taken the time to learn her name, it wasn't important after all, she was just a means to an end._

_She was here to deliver a message._

_It's with care that I begin to open her abdomen, she's still struggling but the blood loss is making her weak, easy to maneuver. I remove her kidneys and her liver, lastly her heart._

_I take care of the organs and return to her, her head already bent forward since life had already left her. Paying no mind to it I begin to hook her head and hands on the hooks already positioned on the ceiling, this is how I begin to paint my art._

_I surround her eyes with tears of blood that I've cried myself._

_I stab her heart, wounding it with the same force that mine has been wounded and leave it on her hands as an offering to the person who wounded me, the one who was invited into my life, the one we trusted, the one who had been allowed to see us._

_The one who betrayed us._

_This is not just my suffering, I carry the burden of the one who loved me, raised me and transformed me into what I am now._

_This girl is me and her death is my pain caused by betrayal._

_This is my design._

\- x - x - x -

Will gasped as he opened his eyes. 

He felt the Ripper on this crime scene, but something was different, finally he understood what it was.

Audra.

She had been the one to create this, the feeling had been the same as the one he felt when the Ripper killed because the Ripper had taught her how to do it, her technics, motivations and feelinds were almost the same as his. 

Hannibal had taught her... For how long he wondered? Such precise cuts and knowledge of the human anatomy took time to learn, she was far too young to know of this. The only explanation was if Hannibal had been teaching her since she had been a child, that would make more sense and provide the time she needed to actually master such art.

A sudden picture flashed in his mind. 

The Creation of Adam.

A mix of a laugh and a sob escaped him. 

Of course... Now he knew how those two victims had been killed at the same time so long ago. Hannibal had killed one of them and Audra had killed the other, together they had left their first gift to Will, a presentation of Hannibal's biggest creation and his legacy, as well her introduction in their story. That's why he had felt it had been the same killer. 

Indirectly it had been, he wasn't wrong at least.

And now he stared at her sorrow, her sadness and grief. 

She hadn't done this for herself, she was also representing Hannibal's and Abigail's suffering. 

She had left him their broken hearts.

The tears were traveling freely down his cheeks now, his sobbing must have been loud for he could hear the fast steps of someone running up the stairs. When the noise stopped, Will heard Jack's worried voice. 

"Will? What happened?" Quickly drying as much tears as he could with his sleeve, Will answered.

"Sorry... T-This one got to me Jack, it won't happen again." The man stared at him for a small moment, face serious but sympathethic before asking. 

"Is it him?"

Will let out a sigh as he took one last look at the body, memorizing it as best as he could so that he would be able to take a better look at it later in his mind palace. Another sigh and he finally replied.

"Yes... It's him."

#

"We are among the palaces built six hundred years ago by the merchant princes, the kingmakers and connivers of Renaissance Florence."

Hannibal walked through the streets of Florence with Audra and Abigail on each side of him, Abigail had a look of wonder on her face as she stared at the ancient buildings, smiling in a way that he hadn't seen her do since Will's betrayal days ago. Audra had a more controlled expression, since her return from the US she had been more talkative, he'd asked how her trip had been and if there had been no trouble as soon as she had returned, after all the girl had traveled with her false name, no disguise had been needed since no one was looking for them, but he wanted to avoid the chances of Will finding them for now, hence the false name. 

"The message was delivered father." That's all she had said to him before smiling for the first time in days. 

Now as they all walked around the streets of Florence together, Hannibal felt the first sparks of healing inside himself. He wasn't a fool, he knew Will would come after them one way or another, but he wanted to delay such a thing for now, they needed the time and convincing the man that they were still in the US had seemed like the most practical option for now. Later he would think more of this, for now he would enjoy the company of his daughters.

"As connivers of modern Florence." Answered Audra to what he had said with an ironic tone. 

"Everything here is so... Beautiful." Spoke Abigail right after her, soon she continued. "I had no idea it would be so wonderful." The girl walked ahead of them for a moment to look closer at a statue she had seen. Once she was away, Hannibal spoke to Audra. 

"I've found a peace here that I would preserve. I've killed hardly anybody during our residence."

"And you should remain like this, at least for now. We've only just arrived, it would be suspicious if bodies started to show up." 

"Indeed... I believe we need to dine out tonight." The girl looked at him with a small smirk on her lips and a raised eyebrow. Her face free of her hair that was currently being held up by a long ponytail was touched gently by the late afternoon sun as she spoke. 

"Seriously? What about the 'I always take care of what I put into my body' rule?" Said her trying to imitate his voice. A small laugh escaped him, Abigail returned and his smile remained on his face as he replied.

"I shall make an exception, besides the place I have in mind has my trust, I've met the chef the last time I was here and he was an admirable man." He continued his walk and the girls followed.

"We're dining out?" Asked Abigail.

"Yes, father decided it would be a good idea. Though we'd have to make time, it's too early for the restaurants to be open now." She quickly looked around in search of anything to do, soon her eyes stopped on a nearby bookstore, she pointed a finger there and spoke. 

"We could go there." Abigail spoke right after her.

"Sounds good, I need new books anyway." 

That's how the Lecters found themselves at a bookstore, looking through the books in search of anything interesting. 

Hannibal had in his hands the latest book of Roman Fell, a frown graced his features as soon as his eyes landed on the name. Unfortunately for Hannibal, he knew the man's work, having read one of his books he quickly noticed that the man had no talent with words, his ideas were not well connected and because of it nothing that he wrote managed to actually make sense. With a sigh he extended his hand to put the book back in place when he heard a voice coming from his side. 

"Do you know Roman's work well?" Hannibal turned his head towards the voice and felt his breath catch in his throat. 

There was a man standing next to him, he had a charming smile on his face, his slightly grey hair combed with obvious care molded his handsome face. His bright blue eyes stared at him with mirth as he waited for an answer. He wore a black elegant blazer with a scarf, also black but with a different tone. 

But none of that was what struck him so much. 

This man had a surprising resemblance to his Will.

He felt a painful tug on his heart at the thought of the empath... Hannibal's thoughts were interrupted by the man's low chuckle before they took him towards darker places, his voice filled with a rich british accent could be heard right after that.

"You were staring at his book with the thinlyveiled disdain of a man who does. I was his TA at Cambridge. He was insufferable even then." After a small pause the man continued. 

"Oh, forgive me where are my manners? Antony Dimmond." He said extending a hand. Hannibal quickly got a hold of it before answering.

"Hannibal Lecter." A pleased smile formed on Antony's face before he spoke once more.

"Well Mr.Lecter, have you read his books? They're terrible." When he said this he shook his head slightly, once he noticed Hannibal's amused face he continued. "You know they're terrible, but you're too polite to say... Blink if you agree."

He blinked and watched as another bright smile spread over Dimmonds lips.

"See?"

Dimmond pulled a weathered paperback from his coat pocket as he spoke.

"That doesn't stop him squatting over a keyboard and depositing a fresh one every six to eight months. It has taken me six to eight months to write one line."

"Why?"

Dimmond stared at Hannibal for a moment before answering, tone of voice hinting that such answer should have been obvious to him from the start. 

"Poetry is hard. Has always been too hard for Roman, of course it's easier for him to slide into academia and dissect the efforts of others than stand by his own words."

Hannibal smiled amused, from the corner of his eyes he noticed Audra and Abigail together looking at a book, both girls would steal glances towards him and soon return to what they were doing. He noticed how Audra's eyes would linger on them though, he knew her enough to know that she was being protective of him. He appreciated the thought, even if it was unnecessary.

With an amused tone he answered the man.

"One can appreciate another's words without dissecting them. Though, on occasion, dissection is the only thing that will do." 

Antony smirked at him, his eyes traveled through Hannibal's face before the man spoke. 

"Indeed?" 

Hannibal maintained his amused expression and smile as he replied.

"Indeed."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> OH MAN I CANNOT DESCRIBE HOW EXCITED I WAS TO WRITE ANTONY! He's sooo fun to write, dear god his manner is so carefree that I feel comfortable in writing him. 
> 
> So what did you guys think? I'm a bit nervous since it's been a long time since I wrote a new chapter of this, but I hope you guys like it. Remember that any idea, critic or comment is welcome. If you want to leave kudos I'd be happy as well. ♥ 
> 
> Thank you so much for reading!


	34. Conflitos

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The meeting between the Lecters and Antony continues, Audra is angry and Will has a new hope.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AFTER ANOTHER ETERNITY HERE I AM AGAIN! 
> 
> I hope you guys like this chapter, after so long even heh. As always it was a bit hard to write but writing is sooo hard you guys have no idea. This may have A LOT of typos so please forgive me, I'll correct them in time.
> 
> Good reading!
> 
> Disclaimer: I own nothing, only Audra.

"Father."

Audra could only stare as both men turned and looked at her, her father held a calm and collected expression, whislt the other man appeared to be stunned as his eyes met hers. Soon enough those eyes traveled from her face towards her body and back, the girl tried not to flinch or say anything rude to the man as he did so, it seemed her dear father hadn't mentioned a daughter. 

Much less two remembered the girl as she felt Abigail approaching them.

So it was with a small portion of amusement that the Lecter girl gave the man a small smile, serene and calm, much like her fathers. It was then that the man seemed to wake up from whatever transe he'd been and finally he spoke, turning his head towards Hannibal with slightly wider eyes and higher tone of voice. 

"Father?"

"Oh Yes, Mr. Dimmond please allow me to introduce you my daughters, Audra and Abigail Lecter." Answered Lecter while poiting graciously to each girl as he said their names, right after that he continued. 

"Girls, this is Mr. Antony Dimmond, a poet I've just had the pleasure of meeting."

Audra, still controling her mask perfectly, kept her smile and gave the man a small nod. She watched as Abigail did the same although in a much more carefree manner, waving slightly at Dimmond, the result was to be expected of course. 

Abigail inspired trust in others, one of the girl's finnest skills in Audra's opinion, so it was no surprise when Dimmond smiled back in a very charming manner, the man quickly approached the new member of the Lecter family, took her hand and kissed it gently, if not jokingly, while speaking. 

"I'm completely charmed young lady." The man's accent danced between his words, his voice velvet and deep surrounded Audra's ears and the girl frowned slightly. 

It appeared Abigail wasn't the only one with the ability to attract people around them. 

Abigail's eyes met Audra's for a flick of a second and that was enough for Audra to discreetly gesture to the other girl towards the man. 

_Keep him talking._ Said her with her eyes, and that was exctly what Abigail did, with her big blue eyes now fixed on Antony's the girl began to speak, 

Audra had the impression of hearing something about poetry before focusing and using that small time to analyse the man. 

The first striking feature the girl noticed was his smile, charming and seductive, a clear reflex of the man himself. His deep dark blue eyes seemed amused and cheerful as he looked at Abigail. His face was simple, fair and proportional, perfectly molded by his greying hair, which seemed to be combed with care. A black scarf surrounded the man's neck, its end meeting the blazer he was wearing. His posture screamed confidence and cockiness, mirth and cunning. 

He was an incredibly handsome man, but that wasn't what made Audra's eyes widen after her small quick inspection.

In reality, this man looked so much like their Will that Audra had to fight to keep her breathing in control. 

She quickly turned her eyes towards her father, usually he'd be watching her, smiling amused by the emotions he could see on the small cracks on her mask that were still visible to him, he'd be analysing this situation and searching for a way to distract himself with it, to see what would happen if he pushed just a little bit. 

That was not what she was seeing. 

His eyes seemed fixed on Dimmond, staring at the man, analysing him, _comparing him to Will._

How dare he do this? How dare Hannibal try and substitute Will in such a way? Will was theirs, he'd come for them in time she knew that, he wouldn't abandon them and yet here was Hannibal, seeing him in another person, in a stranger that was lucky to still be able to draw a breath and... 

"And what about you?" Dimmond's voice sounded much closer to her, Audra blinked and focused her eyes on the man. Amused he continued. 

"Beautiful, quiet and misterious. I should use you as an inspiration to my next poem." He finished chuckling slightly, she heard Abigail chuckle in response and saw a small smile on her father's lips. 

She had to control herself, it wasn't the man's fault, he hadn't been rude she noticed, he was only unlucky enough to look like someone that lived on the other side of the world. She couldn't lose herself so quickly, she had to prove to herself that she wasn't as affected by what had happened with them as her father appeared to be. So it was with a small sigh that the girl spoke. 

"Forgive me Mr. Dimmond, I was distracted that's all."

"Oh there's no problem at all, also there's no need for us to be so formal, please I insist you call me Antony." Replied the man with another charming smile.

With the man's attention focused on her, what else could she do besides smile back? 

"Antony... Father mentioned you were a poet?"

"That is the hardship I must endure yes, such a poor choice in a career wouldn't you say?" His tone was joyful and amused, Audra hated herself a bit for the small laugh she couldn't hold back. 

"I wouldn't know." She spoke after a moment. 

It was then that Antony's eyes turned to her right for a small moment and widened slightly, soon after that, he spoke again. 

"Oh dear look at the time! I'm afraid I must leave you all for now." He spoke while pointing to the clock stuck on the wall behind Audra, after that he continued. 

"Abigail, Audra it was an immense pleasure to meet you both." Then he directed his attention towards Hannibal and spoke once more.

"You too of course, I must remember to thank Roman for his poor writing next time I see him, without it I wouldn't have had any excuse to speak with you."

Hannibal let out a warm chuckle at that, small wrinkles forming around his eyes as he did so. When he spoke, his voice seemed as happy as his laugh. 

"Please do..." She could see he was planning something as he stared at the man in front of him. After a few seconds, her father spoke once more. 

"If you're free, my daughters and I would love to have you for dinner." 

That made her interest pick. 

What had that been? Just another pun like the many they were so fond of? Or a small signal for her that the next meal had been chosen? 

The men were already exchanging numbers so that they would be able to meet on another time, so deep was Audra inside her own thoughts that she almost missed Antony's wave as he finally exited the place. 

"Shall we go and eat? I think we've lost enough time in here as it is." Hannibal's voice startled her and brought her back to the present. 

Audra said nothing, only nodded and walked out of the book store with her family. 

She had much to think about. 

#

"I'm putting this in priority, we don't know when the Ripper will kill again, we still have two more victims to go." 

Will watched as Jack walked around his desk quickly, the man's face was focused and certain, he knew the man felt his objective was near for the first time in a long time. 

It was sad watching the man like this, filled with hope, only to know that he wouldn't stay on Jack's side like the man expected, should they find Hannibal and Audra, Will knew he would chose them both instead of Jack in a second. Suddenly every memore they've had together appeared on his mind, every moment Jack pushed him towards Hannibal, his acceptance towards their relationship, his humour and understanding... 

He would try to avoid betraying Jack if possible.

"Jack..."

"I'm sending a team back to the crime scene to see if they find anything the Ripper may have left behind."

"Jack..."

"Meanwhile I want you downstairs with Katz, Price and Zeller to see if you notice anything else on the body."

"Jack!"

"WHAT?! Will this is kind of important, I'm trying to catch a killer here." The man stopped moving and stared at Will from behind his desk, his face entirely covered with impatience and anxiety. 

Yeah, he wouldn't make it better now. 

"I can't do this anymore Jack."

Silence filled the room, so heavy that for a second Will lost his ability to breathe. After what seemed like an eternity Jack's voice was heard, heavy and barely controled. 

"What?"

"I'm not fit for it anymore, the crime scenes are getting to me and without Hannibal here to help I..." 

"Then go to Alana." Interrupted Jack, his voice raising in volume already. Will let out a sigh and replied.

"No Jack, it won't be the same." Will raised his head, he had no idea when he had lowered it in the first place, and stared at Jack's eyes before continuing.

"I need to stop, I'm being affected. I need to quit."

He let out a heavy sigh as soon as he saw Jack walking around his desk and walking towards him, when the man stopped he stared at Will's eyes for a second, serious, before speaking. 

"You can't leave now Will, you are saving lives here."

Of couse he would go for the saving lives thing, unbothered by it the empath responded with a calm voice. 

"You can't stop me Jack."

There must have been something on his face as he spoke this for Jack backed away frowning, after a few moments of a staring contest between them, Crawford's shoulders relaxed, his whole posture changed and Will saw the exact moment the other man noticed he really couldn't do much in this situation. What he spoke next surprised the empath. 

"Take some time off, solve what you have to solve, organize yourself." The man then raised one of his hands and pointed a finger to Will's face, only then he continued. 

"But once you are done you _will_ come back and you _will_ help with these murders, but if another victim appears I will call you immediately do you understand?"

What else could he do other than agree?

"Understood."

It was better than what he had been expecting really, he should've known Jack wouldn't let go of him so easily, especially with Hannibal and Audra's last victim so recent in his mind. So he couldn't risk losing this time Jack was offering, he just had to use it to its full. 

Jack's voice took him out of his thoughts quickly then.

"It's settled then, speak with Bev downstairs before you go to tell her of this, I'll keep in touch."

Will could see how utterly frustrated Jack was, he could feel it as if such a feeling was his own, bu the couldn't back down. With a nod the empath left the room and walked towards the elevator, he wasted no time in searching for Bev once he arrived at the right level. The woman had been analysing the Ripper's latest victim when she saw him, for his surprise something in her eyes changed, she quickly said something to Price and walked towards him. 

"Hey, can I talk to you for a second?"

Will followed her towards a more secluded area of the place, as soon as they got there the woman turned and looked at him with a serious expression.

"Look, you're not ok." That made his eyes widen slightly and his curiosity peak. Beverly continued. 

"I like to think we are friends Will, I know that with what we do we can't really say that we are ever ok but... Somehow you seem worse." She crossed her arms around herself and for a moment Will noticed some hesitation on her. 

What was going on?

"I put two plus two together and... I know it's because of Hannibal." Will's heart sank. 

"He left for some reason and you're not dealing with this in a good way Will, I got worried so..." She hesitated once more, his curiosity got the best of him and Will spoke. 

"So what Bev?" She looked at him once more and let out a sigh before answering. 

"I found out where he is."

There was no word to describe how quickly Will's mind focused on Beverly alone, how his world narrowed to those unique words. 

_I found out where he is._

His heart was beating faster and he fought to control his breathing, the air that left his mouth trembled and he shook slightly. He vaguely heard her explaining how she managed to find out where he was but he couldn't pay attention to it, it didn't really matter, so with a shaky tone he interrupted her and spoke.

"Where is he?" He managed. 

"Please don't make me regret this..." After a sigh she finally answered. 

"Italy, he's in Italy." 

Italy. 

A sudden memory returned to him then, once when he and Hannibal had been curled together on Hannibal's bed, whispering as if speaking louder would trouble the world itself. 

"My palace is vast, even by medieval standards. The foyer is the Norman chapel in Palermo, severe and beautiful and timeless, with a single reminder of mortality: a skull graven in the floor." Hannibal had said. 

Of course he'd be in Italy... But what about the body they found? Could Audra still be here? He knew the girl had been the one to paint that picture after all.

He had to make sure of that before he could go after the man. 

"Beverly... I..." He stared at the woman in front of him for a long moment before she gave out a small laugh and put one of her hands on his shoulder. 

"Go fix this Will, you two were my favourite couple, I can't let you guys just drift off like that." She finished with a smirk.

Will chuckled for the first time in days and, smiling, spoke.

"That's actually what I needed to tell you, Jack gave me some time off to sort things out." She blinked at least twice before speaking.

"What? Seriously?" Grinning he answered.

"Yup."

"Oh... That's even better then." With one last squeeze on his shoulder the woman spoke. "Go after your man Graham." 

With that, and another small laugh, she finally went away and left the room. 

Will just stood there for a moment letting what had just happened sink into his mind. 

He knew where Hannibal was. 

He could finally go after him. 

It was with a smile that he left the room. 

#

They had just arrived home after dinner and as soon as they entered their house, Audra sat on the armchair on the living room, her expression grim and serious. 

"Audra." Her father's voice could be heard as soon as he entered the room, the girl turned her head towards him at that and listened as he continued.

"What's on your mind? You've been strange this evening."

She got up form where she had been sitting and fixed her eyes on her father's, as soon as she did this she spoke, voice cold.

"He cannot replace Will and you know it." She didn't stay to see the reaction that phrase had earned her, she didn't stay to hear what else he had to say, she just turned around and walked out of the room. Before leaving though, she turned once more and spoke. 

"I won't let you replace him." 

With that she left the room.

She wouldn't allow her father to do something as despicable as this.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There you go, I thought it was time to stop this moment of waiting for them, now Will will go after them for sure and Audra is pissed at Hannibal because Antony and omg everything happens so much. 
> 
> I'll have to make sure this makes sense on the next chapters. I understand that Audra's reaction may seem a bit strange since she was really angry at Will for his betrayal, but everything will be explained on the future. 
> 
> Thank you guys so much for reading! Kudos, comments, ideas and critics are always welcome! ♥


	35. O Início do Fim

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The results of Will's search in the US, a friendly confrontation, an awkward dinner and Will's arrival in Italy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Guys I'm so so so embarrassed, I'm really sorry for the time that took me to write this, I would like to say that I'm not abandoning any of my fics, I just decided to finish each of them independently instead of uploading them all at the same time, it gets confusing and I begin to mix the fics and it all becomes a mess so yeah. 
> 
> This chapter is not really that long, the reason as to why I didn't write much was because of Carnaval, as you may know I'm Brazilian, so I got distracted by traveling with the family and all the other stuff that comes with it. I'm really sorry and I'll try to update more of this. I hope you guys like this chapter, it's a prelude for the meeting so yeah.
> 
> Sorry for any typos. ♥

Four days had passed since Will became aware of Hannibal's location, during this period of time, he dedicated himself to figuring out if Audra was still in the US or not, no more bodies had appeared, as he'd expected, giving him more time to search for her. In each place he searched a new disappointed feeling took a hold of him. 

Nothing. 

Currently standing by the edge of a cliff, staring at the vast ocean that spread out besides the beautiful glassed house he'd just entered in search of the girl, Will knew Audra must have returned to Italy to stay with her father. There were no signals of her wherever he looked, even if the girl was indeed still in the country, his only connection to her was still Hannibal, abandoning the search for her here and going to the other country was still his best chance at finding her.

If someone knew of Audra's whereabouts, that someone was Hannibal. 

Letting out a heavy sigh, Will turned away from the cliff and walked towards the house, as he entered and watched the sunlight invading the room through the glass and making its way into the place he wondered if this wasn't the house Hannibal had spoken to him so long ago, the house he'd prepared for him, Abigail and Audra to live in before they all went to Florence. 

At this sudden memory the empath stopped his walking and just stood there by the piano. 

Hannibal had told him from the start where he would be, he had just been emotionally affected enough to forget about it. 

A startled laugh escaped him at that moment, the cruelty of the situation slammed him on his chest with a vengeance, here surrounded by what could have been their lives from the start, filled with regret, was the moment Will realized he'd been the one to forget, the one that had extended their separation needlessly... 

With a last small sigh, the empath stood up and walked towards the door of the house, as he left and walked towards his car Will imagined what kind of a reaction he'd have when encountering the Lecters. Would they attack him for his betrayal? Would they accept him or deny him? Would he survive this? 

The questions kept coming as he drove to his house, doubt slowly making its way into his thoughts, when he arrived at Wolf Trap and walked towards his door, the certainty he'd felt about his search wavered for a small second before a voice distracted him.

"Will?"

He turned and saw the owner of the voice. 

Alana. 

Oh here comes...

"Alana." The woman stood near his house, he hadn't noticed her there before so lost in his thoughts as he was, she had a serious expression on her face as she stared at him, he didn't have to wait much before she began to speak. 

"You know where Hannibal is."

That was no question, Will wondered for a small moment how had the woman figured it out before nodding, he saw no reason to deny it if she already knew after all. 

"Do you intend to go after him?"

"Yes." Will narrowed his eyes at her as he said this, almost as if daring her to go against him, the woman in answer merely let out a sigh and closed her eyes for a small moment before speaking. 

"Look Will, I'm not here to stop you, just... If you do set things right with him, try not to hurt him again." 

There was no scolding in her voice, only the honest concern of a friend and Will allowed himself to smile at that. Alana only wanted to help, he needed to remember that in the future else he might actually do something against her in his irritation. At the sight of his smile, the woman retributed it with one of her own, even if her tense shoulders did not relax at all, almost as if she would only believe he wouldn't hurt Hannibal again if she saw it with her own eyes. 

"I won't." With that the empath gave one last nod towards the woman and entered the house. 

He had no time for politeness, he had to prepare for his trip so he could leave as soon as possible. 

Hannibal was waiting. 

#

"How well do you know the Fells?" Asked Hannibal directing his eyes towards Antony, the man sat by his left at the table, his head rose calmly as he heard Hannibal's question. After a small moment the poet shrugged and answered. 

"As well as anybody. Which'd be not really. I've only spoken with his wife once, Lydia Fell is her name, as you might already imagine, she didn't like me much." 

His tone had aquired an amused glint in it, such amusement traveled through his eyes as he fixed them on Audra, who'd been sitting ahead of him and by Hannibal's right during this dinner, soon his eyes fell on Abigail, who'd been sitting by Audra's right.

"Why?" Asked Abigail chuckling at the man, she had noticed Audra's lack of reaction and as she spoke this, she lightly kicked the other girl under the table, rushing her to regain her composture. Quickly the Lecter girl started occupy her mouth with food as an excuse for it, all the while keeping a small smile on her face. 

"We share a mutual detestation." Answered the man, after drinking a bit of wine he continued. 

"She disapproves of my disapproval."

Surprinsingly it was Audra who asked the next question, smile fixed on her face as she did it.

"What do you disapprove of?" 

A smirk made its way to Dimmond's lips before he replied.

"Roman, mainly. Lydia isn't quite bright enough to see I'm just intimidated. Roman does, of course. How he loves to strike fear." The sarcasm was heavy in that phrase and all of them chuckled slightly at it.

"Dante wrote that fear is almost as bitter as death." Spoke Hannibal, to which his daughter quickly answered, tone genuinely relaxed and amused. 

"Dante wasn't dead when he wrote it." 

Hannibal smiled at her with amusement clear on his face at the sight of his daughter obvious relax at the current situation. 

Abigail kicked her leg yet again under the table.

Dimmond laughed pleasantly and spoke still smiling.

"You have a sharp one here Hannibal." 

Oh well.

"Are you traveling alone, Antony?" Said Hannibal.

Dimmond raised one of his eyebrow at the question, his eyes now fixed on the other man. Lecter merely smiled back at him, an amused glint in his eyes as he did so. Slowly a smirk took hold of Antony's lips and the man finally answered. 

"I always do, you know how these thing go." Dimmond smiled at the slight twitch on Hannibal's lips before continuing. 

"And what about you?"

"I never travel alone, I have my daughters with me of course." As he spoke this, Lecter got a hold of Audra's hand and giving it a small squeeze, the girl promptly smiled at him sweetely before turning her attention back to the food. 

"Of course..." After a few seconds of silence, Antony spoke again, curiosity marking his voice. 

"Forgive me but... I've noticed you haven't mentioned a spouse?" 

A heavy silence filled the space and Antony quickly directed his eyes towards the other people in the room. Audra had a somber expression on her features as well as Hannibal, Abigail looked down with an uncomfortable expression on her face. The man instantly felt guilty of even asking such a question out of nowhere. As soon as he noticed their reactions, he started to apologize, but Hannibal was quick to raise one hand slightly and spoke.

"There's no need to apologize, you were curious that's all." After a small pause in which Hannibal got a hold of Audra's hand, Lecter continued. 

"Audra's mother passed away on the day of her birth, it is a... Sensitive subject, I'm sure you can understand." Dimmond nodded his head, not sure on what else to say after that, he could only curse at himself for bringing this up. 

Hannibal's voice took him away from his thoughts. 

"Abigail was a recent addition to our family." Said the man with a small smile towards the girl. "She was born in the United States, this is actually her first trip to another country."

Antony nodded once more at this bit of information, he had noticed the strange difference in Abigail's appearence when compared to the Lecters, but had decided not to comment on it. He was about to say something when the blue eyed girl spoke with a jovial and innocent voice.

"And then there's Will."

"Will?" Replied him frowning.

This time it was Audra who spoke, her voice slightly amused as she spoke.

"Yeah, Will is our other father." 

Oh.

There was a small moment of silence where Antony stared at the smiling girls and then at Hannibal, only to see the man eating his food with a small smile of his own on his face as he did so, not preocupied in the slightest.

_Oh._

#

Italy was... It was impressive really. 

He felt awe as he looked up at the buildings and noticed the intricate details in each one of them, with a small sigh he imagined having Hannibal there with him, discreetly showing of to him and explaining the history behind each carving they came across in the city. 

Will had arrived in Florence a few hours ago, he had left his dogs in Bev's care for as long as he remained in Italy (at her insistence of course), he had no luggage with him, the only clothes he had were on him, he left in a rush after all. 

Luckily he remembered to get some money for the trip. 

As he stared at the slightly orange Italian sky, seeing the first signs of a sunset, the empath put his hands inside his pockets and began walking on the street. 

Well... Time to find Hannibal.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There you go! You may be wondering why I didn't make them meet on this chapter, well the answer is that it's been a while since I wrote the last chapter and I need to get my inspiration in place so I don't mess up such an important moment. 
> 
> I really hope you liked it, remember any ideas or critics are welcome, thank you again for reading and for your patience. ♥
> 
> (Also, there will be another art for this fic in my deviantart channel aburi.deviantart.com soon!)


	36. O Encontro - Part 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Will finds a way to lure Hannibal, Antony is being awesome with the girls and death happens.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And here we go with another chapter! I know the chapter is called "The meeting" and all, but they actually meet at the next one, this one is the first part, where the pieces are getting together and all, I needed the reunion to make sense, since Will didn't spent the time inside Hannibal's mind in this fic as he did on the show. 
> 
> I really hope you guys like it! I didn't check for typos so be warned, there will be typos in this. 
> 
> TRANSLATIONS:  
> Prakeiktas = Damn  
> Mylimasis = Beloved
> 
> Good reading!

His steps echoed as he walked inside the cathedral, his head raised high to watch the big columns that kept the whole structure in place as well as the details of paintings and decorations. 

Will walked, watched and imagined at the moment. 

This was the entrance of Hannibal's mind palace, the opening to the mind of a brilliant man and Will couldn't describe the feeling of standing in this place, he could almost see Hannibal sitting on one of those benches, eyes closed as some music played and echoed around him, completely relaxed and calm in his own world. 

He'd been here for a few days and no sign of Hannibal so far, it was frustrating to say the least. 

Will let out a sigh and looked around once more, as if expecting some kind of answer from within the walls of the place, but nothing came. 

At this rate, finding Hannibal would be impossible. 

He'd have to lure him. 

#

Will Graham was in Italy. 

Hannibal sat down on his armchair and absorved this information. 

When he left the United States for Italy he had kept tabs on the empath, in doing so Hannibal expected to be able to... Interfeere when necessary, besides the fact that he really needed to know if Will would betray them again and tell Jack about their real identities so he could make preparations to flee again with the girls, Hannibal also wanted to make sure that the man wouldn't be in need of anything. 

Blame it on him to still be sentimental, but Will was his and Hannibal took care of what was his. 

The current situation was a surprise actually, he'd been prepared to find another list of Will's repetitive routine on paper, but instead he found that the man had left the country and had arrived in Italy, for how long the empath has been in Italy he still wasn't sure though, the only certainty he had was that he was already there on the same night that Antony Dimmond had been in his house having dinner with him and his family. 

Speaking of him, Hannibal found himself being extremely amused by the man's sudden change of behaviour at the mention of Will Graham during dinner, after a few awkward moments a more comfortable relationship had formed between the men and even between Dimmond and his daughters, after that night they spoke whenever they could and the growing friendship between Antony and Audra mainly was extremely amusing to the Lecter.

Now that the girl didn't see the possibility of him taking Will's place, she had become a little bit more open with the man, even though he could tell she was still wary of him. 

Well, at least he knew she didn't want him dead. 

Which was why when she approached him at that moment and asked if she and Abigail could take a walk with Antony around the city he smiled and spoke. 

"Oh? And what kind of plans do you have?" The girl shrugged before answering.

"He wants to take us shopping, by his words I look like a mini you walking around the streets which is unacceptable and Abigail needs more fashionable clothes, emphasis on scarves." 

They both chuckled lightly at this and after a beat Hannibal wondered if he should give the information of Will's arrival now or let his daughters have this last moments of peace before hell (possibly) broke loose, making up his mind he spoke once more. 

"Go, be sure to be home for dinner." 

With a small nod and a smile the girl approached him and gave him her usual kiss on his cheek before turning away and leaving the room, he could hear her voice talking with Abigail in the other room vaguely before tunning them out and returning his attentions to the matter at hand. 

Will. 

How would it be to find the empath? What certainty did he have that Will really didn't tell anything to Jack and the others? He had to be sure before doing anything, he had to protect his girls before everything, besides the possible arrest, they had only just recovered slightly from the empaths betrayal and it wouldn't be easy to see him again. 

On the other hand... Will was here, he'd come for him like he said he always would. 

A small smile broke through his lips at the thought, he longed for the other man, he missed his smile, his terrible aftershave's smell, the gentle curls of his hair, the blinding inteligence that rested inside that beautiful brain of his... 

In full, he missed Will Graham and he needed nothing else now other than him. 

With a sigh Hannibal got up from his armchair and walked towards the glassed door of the living room, staring at the sky he could only hope that Will felt the same and that his actions would reflect that. 

He didn't know if he could stand another betrayal. 

#

"Antony, for how long will you be staying here in Italy?" Asked Abigail to the man. 

The three walked down the streets of the city back to the Lecter's house, the sun already leaning towards its rest on the horizon, each hand carrying bags filled with new clothing that they'd spent the whole day buying, many of them as a gift from Antony, by his insistence of course. 

Audra stared at the man after Abigail asked her question, she had to admit that he'd grown on her, his charming personality was almost impossible to resist and a strange friendship had been born between them, it seemed inevitable and Audra resented him a bit for that. 

She couldn't say the same for Abigail though, as Audra looked upon the girl's face and watched a slight redness there as the girl watched Antony waiting for an answer, she let out a smile of her own. 

Of course Abigail would develop a small crush for the man. 

Audra let out a sigh. 

She couldn't say she felt the same, but damn if she didn't understood. 

"Another week, soon I'll shall be free of Dr. Fell and his terrible antics." 

Audra watched as Abigail lowered her head at the man's answer, she as well had not been expecting him to leave this soon, taking the time to curse the man for sneaking into their lives and good graces in such a small period of time, the Lecter girl approached Abigail with as much subtlelty as possible and gave her shoulder a small noudge, the girl raised her head in return and gave a small smile. 

Satisfied Audra turned her head ahead once more. 

Only to see that Dimmond had been watching their interaction. 

_Prakeiktas._

She had expected Antony to say something sarcastic at least and prepared herself to listen to something that would probably border on rude, instead the man approached the Hobbs girl and poked her nose softly while speaking in a gentle voice. 

"I'll keep in touch girl, how would I be able to leave those big blue eyes behind just like that?" 

A bright smile took a hold of Abigail's lips at that and Audra let out one of her own minimalistic smiles. She knew he'd noticed of the girl's infatuation with him, being a man of his age and knowledge he knew not to give her hope where there was none, Audra knew that but still, it was nice to see her this happy. 

That was, of course, the moment he turned to her and poked her own nose in the same fashion. 

"That includes you too, your eyes can't be left behind like that as well, those reddish eyes of you Lecters are far too rare for that." A more teasing tone touched the man's voice and Audra rolled her eyes even if a smile still escaped her. 

"I'm glad." Spoke Abigail smiling at him. 

And that was that, they continued their walk chatting idly on the way. 

Until Audra heard it. 

The news coming from a television inside a bar, spoken in clear fluid italian said the words clearly and loud enough for her to listen. 

She stopped dead on her tracks, whatever expression that had been on her face left her, leaving only emptiness, her eyes cold stared at the floor as the girl tried her best to hide the impact that those words had had on her. 

_Oh God..._

#

Hannibal stared at his television in stunned silence. 

The journalist's voice still clear in his memory as she spoke, her deep voice had carried the rich italian words deep into his brain as he tried to comprehend exactly what it was that he was hearing.

_'A body has been recently found at the Normal chapel in Palermo, due to the violent nature of the crime scene, no images shall be shown here tonight, but a testimony from the Inspector Rinaldo Pazzi clarifies that the body found has been molded into the shape of a human heart , balanced by three swords. Pazzi tells us that the body was surrounded by flowers of three types, purple Hyachinth, Ambrosia and Viscaria. The Inspector say that the police still is gathering evicende to find out the meaning behind those, as well as the identity of the victim and the killer himself. Now, with the weather..._

Hannibal's breathing started to get faster, his eyes widening at the meaning of the flowers at the crime scene.

_Please forgive me, your love is reciprocated. Will you dance with me?_

This couldn't be a coincidence, the fact that Will had arrived in Italy, the meaning of the message, even the way of delivering the message. 

It was Will. 

Will had given him this beautiful gift, a valentine written on a broken man.

Will had offered him his broken heart. 

Hannibal felt a small tear traveling through his face and that was what snapped his attention back to the present. He quickly got up from his chair and walked fast towards his phone, his fingers flew through the numbers and soon the familiar voice of his daughter filled the line. 

"Father..." Her voice was shaking, her breathing slightly heavy. 

She must have seen the news same as him and made the connection. 

He opened his mouth to speak, but was interrupted by Antony's voice. 

"Hannibal?" He frowned before answering, taking care to maintain his voice as calm and normal as possible.

"Antony, is there a problem with Audra?"

"Yes, I'm sor yto barge in like this in your phone call, but Audra's a bit pale and... Well she seems to be in shock actually." The man let out a sigh before continuing.

"Abigail is trying to talk to her, but she keeps staring ahead of her, I'm taking her to your house right away, I'm a bit worried."

Hannibal smiled at that, Antony has been slowly creeping his way inside their lives with scary success, so much that only now Hannibal noticed that he'd entrusted the man with his girls, sure Audra could defend herself and Abigail until the other girl has her own training, but still. 

"I'd appreciate that, I'll speak with her as soon as you arrive."

"Sure thing, just... Give me a feedback ok? I worry about the kid." 

Hannibal laughed slightly before answering. 

"Of course Antony, I'll see you all soon." After hearing the man's answer Hannibal ended the call. 

It didn't take long for them to arrive at the house, Hannibal watched as Abigail and Antony left their shopping bags on the sofa at the living room right after leaving Audra in Hannibal's care. The girl's face was serious, her eyes slightly unfocused as she stared forward, there was no reaction for now and he knew she was waiting until Antony left for her to say something.

"Abigail, stay with Audra please, I'll acompany Antony to the door." 

He did and both men stopped by the door. 

"I'll visit before leaving to England." Said Antony as he put his hands inside his pockets, Hannibal nodded and replied. 

"Please do." Dimmond gave him a nod before turning and walking away from the house, before walking too far he turned once more and spoke. 

"Remember the feedback!"

Hannibal waved at him and smiled, right after that he finally closed the door and returned to the living room, where now Audra and Abigail sat together at the sofa, shopping bags nowhere to be seen. 

Audra was the first to speak.

"It's Will isn't it?"

"Yes."

"How can you be certain?" Asked Abigail, turning her head to look at Hannibal and Audra. 

"The flowers." Spoke the man, after a moment of silence he continued.

"Also, early this afternoon I learned that Will Graham had left the US and arrived in Italy recently." As soon as he spoke this he saw the expression on Audra's face becoming darker, he let out a sigh at this. 

Honestly, this girl...

"I did not comment on it for I did not want to spoil your afternoon with Antony my dear, no need to be sour." She rolled her eyes and spoke. 

"How can you be sure that he's not trying to get us? That Jack is not involved?"

"I cannot be sure, but alas... You cannot control with respect to whom you fall in love. I need to see him." There was a small silence before he continued. 

"Will sent us a message and I intend to answer it." He walked towards Abigail and extended a hand to her, the girl frowned slightly before taking it and rising up from the sofa, he gently caressed her hair and spoke. 

"Abigail, you are still new to this way of life, training is required and... I do not wish to break you by speeding up something that needs time, so please understand that I do not wish for you to be involved in this for now." 

He stared at those big blue eyes that stared right back at him and smiled when the girl nodded, still so innocent even with all of her manipulative skills. He truly did not want her killing so soon, he would need time to work on her, with Audra's help of course. 

Speaking of the girl, Hannibal gave Abigail's forehead and approached his daughter still sitting on the sofa, as he extended his hand the girl took it without questioning and hesitation. 

Loyal to the last. 

"Mylimasis, would you like to acompany me in this hunt?" The girl smiled and answered.

"Of course father, it would be rude not to answer Will's message after all." 

#

Italy was in shock.

Four days after the discovery of the heart shaped man at the Normal chapel yet another crime was commited, a young couple has been found at a lonely street at night. Both were molded as the famous painting of Botticelli, Primavera. Both dressed as the characters and surrounded by pink Camellias and white Violets. 

So interested at the event was the whole city that, at a small cafe, no one noticed as Will Graham smiled brightly at the television, longing to see the crime scene with his own eyes to feel what Hannibal, and possibly Audra, felt as they painted that image to him. How they chose their victims, how they felt when they noticed that he'd been the one to send them his broken heart and how father and daughter looked together, bathed in blood and smelling like flowers as they finished their art.

The answer to his message. 

No one noticed as the anticipation traveled through Will's body as he realized that Hannibal had given him a place for them to meet, neither did they notice the slight tremble of his hands at this revelation.

No one noticed as tears slowly made their way into Will's eyes as the message of the flowers finally registered in his brain. 

_Longing for you, let's take a chance on happiness._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yeeey now they are going to meet!
> 
> I'M ACTUALLY NERVOUS TO WRITE THAT OH GOD I HOPE I DON'T MESS UP 
> 
> So what did you guys think? Remember that any ideas, critics and comments are welcome! Thank you somuch for reading! ♥ 
> 
> Every information on flower language came from this site: http://thelanguageofflowers.com/


	37. O Encontro - part 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They meet.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And finally after soooooo long, here is their meeting. 
> 
> This one took a long time to write and now I'm a bit happy with it, I hope I didn't screw with such an important moment but oh well, this is the best I could come up with. The reason I took so long to update was, again, college. Just so you guys know it's like, 2AM and that's the only free time I have nowadays. *sigh*
> 
> But enough of that, good reading! I hope you guys like it! ♥  
> Warning: It's 2AM, there will probably be typos in this, if there are tell me and I'll fix it, thanks. 
> 
> Disclaimer: Hannibal is not mine, Audra is though.

His steps echoed as he walked inside the museum, the Primavera painting already familiar in his mind as he approached it anxiously. 

Would it be today? 

Will has been coming to the museum everyday ever since the message Hannibal had given him on his latest crime, he waited a week of course as to not rise suspition about himself, now that he came to the museus he kept wainting to see that angular face again, to hear his voice and smell his fragance. It felt like such a long time Will had to wonder if Hannibal had changed at all, if Audra's hair was still as long as he remembered or if she had finally bent to her father's will and cut it to an acceptable length, does Abigail know how to play the piano or the theremin now? 

So many questions that haunted his mind as he watched the characters on the painting, too much time he'd wasted on trying to be something he knew he was not and now he was determined not to let this happen again.

With a sigh Will sat down on a bench right in front of the painting and waited much like he did on the other days.

#

"When are you going to go?" 

Audra's voice took him out of his thinking and Hannibal raised his head towards her, the girl held a glass of wine and leaned her body towards the wall, her long her was pulled up and her clothing simple, gray trousers and a black loose blouse. She raised her eyebrows to him, wainting for an answer and Hannibal let out a sigh before giving it. 

"I believe it's been long enough to go and visit the painting without raising suspition now..." He stopped speaking for a second in consideration and continued right after a moment. 

"Tomorrow." With that he returned his attention to his piano, playing the song he and Audra had composed together when they were still in the United States and Will hadn't betrayed them yet, it was bittersweet, but useful for his current state of mind. 

The girl gave him a nod and, after drinking a bit of wine, spoke. 

"Do you want me to keep vigilance of the place? See if the police is coming in case Will's planning on betraying us again?" Her tone was calm as she spoke this, but Hannibal could still hear the bitterness carefully hidden in her voice. 

He understood her of course, he felt the same. 

Without taking his attention of the music, he answered.

"That would be appreciated yes." She nodded and spoke. 

"Very well then... I'll go prepare things for tomorrow just in case." With that she left and he finally had the peace to think about what his meeting with Will mght mean for them from now on, should Will betray them one more time, would he have the courage to finally end his life? To live without Will Graham... 

"Hannibal?"

Abigail.

With a sigh Hannibal stopped playing his music once more and fully turned his body towards the voice. 

So much for a moment of peace to think. 

"Yes Abigail?" She entered the room with certain steps and crossed her arms before speaking. 

"Will is in Italy, I want to see him."

He'd been expecting this of course, it could be an advantage to have Abigail with him when he went to meet Will, but still, the girl was far too inexperienced, he couldn't trust her not to rush things, not to be completely careful and aware of things at the level he required. Should Will's life end, would she be able to do it? 

He knew the answer to that already. 

"I'm afraid such a thing might be impossible my dear." He watched as she blinked a few times before answering. 

"Will is coming and you don't want me to see him?"

"The meeting with Will is uncertain Abigail, there is no way to know if he will betray us once more, I can't risk you." 

"Well, Audra is going."

"Yes." Answered the man, to which the girl frowned and spoke.

"I'm going with her." 

Honestly, this girl.

"Abigail..."

"I heard you, she's just keeping an eye around for the police, I can do that and not interfeere with your meeting." Said the girl, finality in her voice as she did so. 

Hannibal smiled to himself, already she became more confident and at ease with them enough to speak with him in such a manner. With a sigh he nodded and spoke. 

"Very well, acompany Audra, follow her orders and should she pull the trigger, don't interrupt her." 

He could see the surprise on her face at the mention of a trigger, but Abigail still nodded, smiled and finally left the room, probably in search of Audra to discuss things. 

Silence filled the room once more and Hannibal had to prepare. 

On the next day, he would meet Will Graham once more and he had no idea if he was prepared for this or not. 

#

One more day. 

Will drags his feet as he walks the now familiar path towards the painting, he felt tired, nervous and anxious all at once. Everyday he came to this place he expected to see him there standing in front of the painting waiting for him, he would turn, their eyes would meet and then...

Time stopped. 

As Will arrived at the entrance of the place where the painting was his heart stopped beating, his breathing began to grow heavy and quick, his lips parted and his eyes widened. 

There, sitting on the bench in front of the painting was Hannibal Lecter. 

Will wanted to run to him, wanted to scream, to cry, to laugh, he wanted to touch his skin and feel its heat, he wanted so much and yet he couldn't move, his body wouldn't obey him so he just stood there staring. Hannibal's hair was longer, the man wore a comfortable dark blue shirt with black trouses, his head was bent and Will couldn't see his face, but he could see that he was drawing something. As soon as Hannibal's head turned towards the painting and back to his sketchbook Will knew he was drawing the painting itself. 

Of course he would be. 

This is the first time Will has seen Hannibal after the man had left him, the bitterness of the situation was not lost to him and yet all he could feel was regret for his actions and a deep sense of longing. This was ridiculous, he traveled across the ocean to meet this man, to see him and talk to him, to try and get back what they had and now that he was right there in front of him hw couldn't move?

With an indignant sigh Will gave the first step towards Hannibal. 

_Lecter's head went up once more and now he could see his defined, angular face more clearly._

Another step. 

_His smell reached Will's nose and he allowed himself to close his eyes for a second, the memory of that smell surrounding him completely washed over him and a strong shiver ran down his body._

One more step and Hannibal was right there, still not giving any indication that he'd noticed him whatsoever. 

_No more steps could be given._

Will raised his hand and laid it gently on Hannibal's shoulder, his heat was intoxicating, the way it tensed as Hannibal finally stopped what he was doing, how the man still wouldn't look up even if Will touched him is mesmerizing, Hannibal was nervous, Will could see it clearly, he could share it with him with his empathy.

He allowed his hand to squeeze Lecter's shoulder before walking around the bench and sitting on it besides Hannibal, close enough that their sides were touching. Will counted to three and turned his head and oh... 

Hannibal's eyes were fixed on him. 

How he had missed those strange beautiful maroon eyes, the warmth in them everytime Lecter stared at him, the mischief in them everytime they ate dinner together. 

His cheekbones are still the same, the curve of his lips, the way they part, everything is still there and Hannibal is staring right back at him without saying anything, just analysing, controling himself, trying not to succumb to his feelings, Will is here... His blue intense eyes that see too much, he's not wearing that atrocious aftershave that's why I didn't notice him entering the place, the softness of his lips, the unkept stubble, the way his curls dance around his face, Will is here... Will is here... 

He closed his eyes then, his empathy was a curse sometimes, but now it was a source of relief, Hannibal missed him, he was happy to see him, he longed for Will as much as Will longed for him. 

Will dared to reach out with his left hand to touch the other man, anywhere really he wasn't being picky at the moment, his hand ended up being on top of Hannibal's right leg. As soon as they made physical contact, Will spoke, voice shaking. 

"Good to see you."

Seriously, that's what he came up with? After all this time?

Hannibal seemed to feel the same way if the amusement on his face was any indicator, but the man answered, smiling as he did so.

"If I saw you every day forever, Will, I would remember this time."

He couldn't do this. 

Will stared at the gentle expression on the other man's face and crumbled. His breathing became faster once more and when he spoke, his voice sounded like a small whisper. Had Hannibal been farther, he probably wouldn't have listened. 

"Hannibal, I'm so sorry... I never wanted this to happen I..." He couldn't finish, he had no idea what he had wanted when he betrayed the man, he felt stupid and useless and now here, sitting besides the man he loved he couldn't cope. 

It was Hannibal's soft voice that took him out of his own mind. 

"My dear Will..." Oh how good it was to listen to his name coming from those lips again. To hear that velvet tone directed at him once more... 

"Betrayal and forgiveness are best seen as something more akin to falling in love. And I believe we've already crossed that line, haven't we?" 

Will stared, waiting for the man to continue, his heart beating fast. They were in love, Hannibal just said he was still in love with him, did he really mean that... 

"The past belongs in the past, the line was crossed and now... Well, now I believe we must look forward." He smiled as he ended his sentence. 

"I love you." Will blurted out without a thought, the look on Hannibal's face could only be described as relief, surprise and fondness all mixed together, Will got a little bit closer to the other man and spoke near his ear, aware of where they were, his voice still shaking goddamn it couldn't he control himself?!

"I will never turn by back on you again, I can't survive this once more Hannibal, I love you, I love you so much please, please just take me home with you again." He allowed his lips to touch Hannibal's ear as he spoke near it and smiled slightly at the obvious shiver that ran down the other man's body. 

God he'd missed him so much, he needed to feel him again, he needed Hannibal as close as possible, over him, in him, in any way they managed before... 

A thought suddenly entered his mind and Will backed away a little. 

"The girls?" 

This seemed to take Hannibal out of his own stuppor and the man raised one of his hands and rested it gently on Will's cheek, his thumb caressing it softly before he spoke. 

"You never stop to amaze me my dear..." After a small second and a smile, he continued. 

"The girls are fine, Abigail is anxious to see you again, she wanted to come here today to see you in fact." 

"Why didn't she?"

"This was a... Very intimate moment, I would not share this with anyone other than you." Admitted the other man as he made a slightly guilty face, Will smiled and listened as Hannibal spoke once more. 

"She is currently with Audra." 

That name made something inside Will clench, he still remembered Audra's face when she realized his betrayal, he remembered her blood on the wall of his basement, of how she had cried and lost her whole composture. Something must have shown on his face for Hannibal's own expression sombered, Will felt the need to ask. 

"How is she?"

"Still recovering, but mostly she's angry. Audra doesn't take well to betrayals as you might already know." 

Yes being left behind by your father at the age of 13 could do that to you. 

He didn't say that out loud of course. 

"She still hasn't forgiven you completely so... Beware of her. Her trust is easily lost and very difficult to get back." Continued Hannibal. Will couldn't stop himself from saying what he did next. 

"She forgave you quite quickly though."

"We spent seven years apart from each other and I am her father." Answered Hannibal, amusement obvious in his tone.

Ok... There was that. 

"And what am I?" Asked the empath, to which Lecter answered promptly.

"You were hope, one that is now lost." His words were cruel and almost made his recoil. Sadness and pity took over Hannibal's face before the man spoke again, tone gentle.

"She will forgive you Will, she already wants to, she just needs time. Give her that." Will nodded and lowered his head for a second. 

There was so much he wanted to say, so much he wanted to do, but here he couldn't do it, he felt trapped in this place. It was then that he felt Hannibal's movement on his side, he was rising up from the bench, Will admired his lovely figure standing in front of him and when Hannibal extended his hand towards him, Will didn't even think, he just grabbed it and rose up as well.

"Shall we?" Asked Hannibal.

"Yes." Answered Will. 

As they walked out of the museum, Will noticed the night sky, how long had they been in the museum? He watched as the stars were shining that night, he stopped walking and got a hold of Hannibal's shirt before the man could walk ahead of him, he also stopped and stared at Will as the empath spoke. 

"This is so strange, when I was away from you, I looked up at the night sky. Orion above the horizon and, near it, Jupiter... I wondered if you could see it too." After a pause Will turned his eyes towards Hannibal once more and spoke again. 

"I wondered if our stars were the same."

"From now on they shall be my dear Will." He said this with a smile and gently, almost in a shy way, approached him enough that now he was cabaple of taking a hold of the empath's hand. Will stared at their hands together and then back at Hannibal's face before smiling. 

"Ah, I was almost forgetting." Said Lecter. 

"What?"

"You wanted to know of Audra's and Abigail's whereabouts, well..." Hannibal looked up at one of the buildings, rose his hand and waved. Suddenly a small light began to shine up there, small enough not to be noticed if people weren't looking, but still obvious enough if you did. Will felt his eyebrows going up before asking. 

"That's where they are? On the roof?"

"Indeed, I had asked Audra to keep an eye out just in case, Abigail insisted in helping her."

"In case I betrayed you again that is." Seriously he wasn't even offended, he would've done the same if he was Hannibal. 

"Yes."

"And just how is Audra suppose to actually do something from there?"

"Audra has many skills Will, and handling the sniper rifle is one of the most dintinct ones."

Will stared.

"You taught Audra how to be a sniper?" Said the empath, voice incredulous.

"It's not the first time I've taught it to someone." Answered Hannibal, he was already walking and pulling Will with him, both men holding hands as they did so, they left the museum grounds and walked towards the city.

"Ok, I'm not even going to ask." Said Will, to which Hannibal let out a small laugh and squeezed his hand in return. 

"Oh I did miss you my dear..." Will smiled before answering.

"So did I."

"Oh and you'll have to deal with Audra once we get home, she's still angry."

"And armed apparently."

"Yes."

Will let out a sigh.

This would be tough, but as he looked at the now relaxed face of Hannibal Lecter besides him, as he felt the heat of his hand covering his own, he knew it would all be worth it in the end. He let Hannibal guide him through the streets of the city and only imagined what waited for him at their new house and life together.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There you go! 
> 
> I feel like I need to explain a few things so let's go, the other person Hannibal taught how to deal with a sniper rifle in this story was Chiyoh, I wanted to have that element in this becasue I thought it was amazing, but putting Chiyoh here made no sense so yeah, that's her little cameo in this fic. Also, they are more relaxed at the end of the story because they are both feeling as if the storm is over, so that's why the fic changes like that from being romantic, slightly angsty and suddenly small jokes so yeah. 
> 
> Oh man I really hope you guys liked it, any comments, ideas or critics are welcome. Kudos are nice too heh.  
> Thank you so much for reading! We're nearing the end of this, after this one is over, I'll focus on Follow The Rhythm! ♥

**Author's Note:**

> So... Yey?  
> I will try to write as fast as I can, I was thinking about this for days now and it's a relief to put it out. ALSO I have a picture of how I think Hannibal's daughter looks like, it's a picture of Noomi Rapace that Ialtered a bit to make her look a bit more like our dear cannibal. I know my photoshop skills are trash but hey at least we have an image.  
> http://aburi.deviantart.com/art/Audra-Lecter-525913561?ga_submit_new=10%253A1428634768


End file.
